Employees of the Purolator courier company are preparing to sue their employer over its mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy, after a cease and desist letter was dismissed by the company.
A group of hundreds of unionized and non-unionized employees will be seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in punitive damages from Purolator, says a May 6 statement from the prospective plaintiffs obtained by The Epoch Times.
Purolator’s vaccination policy, which required employees to be fully vaccinated by Nov. 1, technically offers medical and conscience exemptions, but the group of employees alleges all accommodation requests have so far been denied.
Non-compliant employees were placed on unpaid leave on Jan. 10 after a grace period where testing could be used as an alternative, which led to some taking early retirement or finding work elsewhere, the statement says.
“The damage and disruption of life has been catastrophic for thousands,” says the statement, noting some employees had to refinance their homes or use their life savings to survive.
“Employees worked long hours to supply the medical community and the needs of customers to ensure the supply chain didn’t collapse. They did all this while braving the pandemic. These courageous employees are now without earnings doing a job they loved.”
The cease and desist letter sent to Purolator by lawyer Leighton Grey of Grey Wowk Spencer LLP on April 25 argues that the current vaccines are experimental with no long-term safety data, are known to cause side effects such as heart inflammation and blood clots, and do not stop the spread of the virus.
“The allegation that only the unvaccinated spread COVID-19 is patently false and untrue, and yet you are continuing to impose these divisive, misleading and unethical vaccine mandates,” wrote Grey.
Claims ‘Have no Legal Merit’: Purolator
A copy of Purolator’s response was provided to The Epoch Times by the prospective plaintiffs.“The claims in your letter are factually inaccurate and have no legal merit,” wrote Purolator counsel Simon-Pierre Paquette in a letter dated April 26, adding that the company will not change its policy.
“Purolator takes the health and safety of its employees extremely seriously, and its COVID-19 Safer Workplaces Policy was implemented in compliance with all applicable legislation.”
The Epoch Times contacted Purolator for comment but did not hear back by publication time.
A copy of the company’s “COVID-19 Safer Workplaces Policy” with an Oct. 13, 2021, issue date obtained by The Epoch Times states that the policy is “Consistent with current medical guidance and the Federal government’s recently announced direction.”
“Vaccination has been shown to be highly effective in reducing COVID-19 virus transmission and protecting individuals from severe consequences of COVID-19 and variants, including the Delta variant currently circulating in Canada,” the policy says.
Grey, the lawyer representing the employees, told The Epoch Times he expects to file the lawsuit against Purolator before June and is pursuing similar actions against railway companies Canadian National and Canadian Pacific, as well oil and gas company Canadian Natural Resources Ltd (CNRL).