An unvaccinated hospital worker had his COVID-era termination overturned - only to find his old desk already belonged to someone else.
The arbitrator in Unifor Local 27 v London Health Sciences Centre, issued Oct. 28, 2026, rescinded the termination of a controls technician who had been let go for refusing to comply with the hospital’s mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy. But the worker did not get his old job back. He got an unpaid leave of absence.
The worker started at London Health Sciences Centre - one of Canada’s largest acute-care teaching hospitals, with nearly 15,000 staff, physicians, students and volunteers - in August 2020. His role as a full-time controls technician required him to be on-site. There were only three such positions at the hospital.
In July 2021, the hospital introduced a vaccination program that encouraged but did not require COVID-19 vaccination. The worker completed the required e-learning module and complied with masking, screening, and rapid testing protocols.
Then, on Sept. 3, 2021, the hospital made vaccination mandatory. Under the amended policy, staff who were not vaccinated and did not hold a medical or human rights exemption would be placed on “an unapproved, unpaid leave of absence.” Failure to comply could lead to discipline up to and including termination.
The union did not challenge the reasonableness of the amended policy.
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