Former employees of the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) will receive nearly $8 million. The workers lost their jobs after the BART denied their religious exemptions for the COVID-19 vaccine.
While BART initially approved the vaccine exemptions, according to reports, the employees claimed they were not adequately accommodated for their religious beliefs and ultimately lost their jobs.
Each of the six employees will receive more than $1 million.
The employees have been represented by the Pacific Justice Institute (PJI) since 2022. PJI’s president, Brad Dacus, called the verdict a “legal earthquake.”
“These verdicts are seismic—a 7.8 San Francisco legal earthquake. This amazing outcome represents so much hard work by our team, perseverance by these clients, and fairness from our judicial system,” he said.
Kevin Snider, PJI’s Chief Counsel, said the “rail employees 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.”
BART argued that several of the employees’ requests for accommodations were more secular than religious, although the jury disagreed.
“Of the 179 religious objector employees, not one received an accommodation,” the lawsuit read. “Exclusion of religious people from the enjoyment of a right stands in violation of the First Amendment’s religion clauses and federal and state anti-discrimination in employment laws.”
