NU††ER WA†CH
Barbara Andreas, Stephen Cribb, and Adam Pajer filed their lawsuit on June 30 and each objected to the company rejecting religious exemptions from Covid protocols required by the company. The former two were fired in March, while Pajer was released in June, according to their lawsuit which is seeking an unspecified amount in damages to cover lost wages and benefits, as well as the trio’s attorney fees.
Andreas referred to Covid testing and vaccines were a “medical experiment” and wearing a face covering is an “affront” to her Christian beliefs.
“Religious creed includes my dress and my grooming practices, including what I put on my head or face,” Andreas wrote. “Wearing a face covering is an affront of my Christian beliefs. Further, participating in a medical experiment, such as covid testing or vaccines, is also a violation of my religious beliefs.”
Disney responded to Andreas writing: “After careful review of the information you provided, we are unable to conclude that you are prevented from wearing a face cover due to a sincerely held religious belief, practice or observance.”
The lawsuit claims that Disney “could and should have chosen to accommodate these religious beliefs in practice,” and that the protocols made it clear the company “irrationally” feared the workers “as perpetually exposed or infectious with disease and a perpetual danger to other cast and guests.”
Disney’s vaccine mandate was suspended in November after Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida lawmakers limited the power for employers to require workers to be vaccinated. The company later dropped masking requirements for vaccinated employees.
The lawsuit claims that Disney’s “augmented protocols” that were forced on non-vaccinated employees consisted of “harsh isolation and restrictions” that caused “serious breathing” and made it “nearly impossible to find a compliant manner and location in which to eat or drink while on shift.”
