The six employees initially requested religious exemptions to the vaccine mandate, joining a total of 109 workers who lodged such requests. However, BART did not take these religious exemption requests seriously, if not rejecting them outright.
BART technically granted exemptions to the COVID-19 vaccine mandate – but did not provide accommodations to those exempted on religious grounds. This essentially rendered the exemptions meaningless.
In the case of the six, they pointed out that an accommodation would have allowed them to work from home or regularly test for COVID-19 before coming to work. But instead of granting this accommodation, BART simply dismissed them from their jobs.
This prompted the six to sue BART in federal court. The lawsuit claimed that the dismissal of the six employees violated the First Amendment and anti-discrimination in employment laws at both the federal and state level.
ABC7 reported that in the first phase of the federal trial, jurors were asked if BART had "proven that the plaintiff could not be reasonably accommodated without undue hardship." The jury unanimously concluded that this was "not proven by BART" with regard to the six plaintiffs. It ruled on Oct. 23 that the COVID-19 vaccine presented a genuine conflict to the former employees' religious faith.
Given the jury's decision, a federal judge ordered BART to pay a total of $7.8 million "calculated from lost wages" to all six former employees. When divided by six, each individual plaintiff is set to receive $1.3 million.
Other former workers resolute in fighting BART's medical tyranny
BART has not commented on the Oct. 23 decision, according to ABC7. In 2021, the transit agency's board of directors voted 8-1 to impose a COVID-19 vaccine mandate on employees.
Lead trial attorney Kevin Snyder commented on the decision, saying that the six plaintiffs "chose to lose their livelihood rather than deny their faith."
"That in itself shows the sincerity and depth of their convictions. After nearly three years of struggle, these essential workers feel they were heard and understood by the jury and are overjoyed and relieved by the verdict." (Related: People who RESISTED medical tyranny are now WINNING religious exemption lawsuits.)
Some people ABC7 spoke with believe that the recent case involving BART is similar to an instance in Tennessee. In the said trial, the jury awarded more than $600,000 to the plaintiff who refused to get the COVID-19 injection despite a mandate to do so.
In 2021, the outlet's J.R. Stone interviewed BART employees who had been involved in other settlements that year. He noted in his report that the former employees were resolute in fighting what they denounced as unjust decisions from the transit agency.
"I'm not giving in, and there's a number of us that have the same opinion," Albert Roth, one BART employee, said at the time. "We're not giving in, we're holding ground, holding firm on what our beliefs are."
"I've been homeless before, and this is what I told the BART board: '[You] know, I'm not afraid to be homeless again; it is what it is,'" Rhiannon Doyle, another employee, said at the time. "But now, they're tapping into people's rights and I'm not going to stand for that. Not on my watch."
Given the Oct. 30 verdict their former colleagues received, there seems to be a sliver of hope for Doyle and Roth. If anything, the ruling may serve as a precedent that could see the two employees receive compensation from BART.
Head over to HealthFreedom.news for more stories like this.
Watch Alix Mayer explaining the broader implications of vaccine mandates during her appearance on the "Health Ranger Report."
This video is from the Brighteon Highlights channel on Brighteon.com.
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New York Supreme Court reinstates all government employees fired for refusing COVID "vaccination."
VINDICATED: School district agrees to REINSTATE and PAY teachers fired for refusing COVID-19 shots.
Scientist to receive $687,000 settlement after being fired for refusing COVID-19 vaccine.
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