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The federal government’s authority to grant religious exemptions from travel vaccination mandates for air carriers has been described by Air Canada as “unlawful” and “constitutionally flawed” and has led to wide differences in how unvaccinated travelers are treated by different airlines, internal documents show. reveal
Although Transport Canada leaves it up to service providers to decide what constitutes a “sincerely held religious belief,” the department will monitor information regarding the implementation of the vaccination mandate for travelers and workers in the transportation sector.
Transport Canada Briefing Package “Vaccination Obligation – Snapshot Reporting for ADMs [Assistant Deputy Ministers]” The information, as of April 19, was recently filed in federal court.
The package is linked to the words of Jennifer Little, the Transport Canada official who wrote the mandatory travel vaccination policy. Small and other government witnesses and experts have testified and been questioned in connection with four lawsuits challenging the travel mandate in or around June.
One briefing slide in the package, “Passenger Compliance Overview,” tracks how exempt more than 70 air carriers are in the categories of “essential care,” “medical” and “religious.”
Under the heading “Key Points,” Air Canada “to date has not tolerated any religious differences,” the slide says.
In the next shot, “WestJet reported 50 religiously specific requests and 90 were accepted. WestJet continues to receive the highest number of inquiries week on week of all reporting entities.
Another “key point” mentioned is that WestJet has continued to deny boarding since it began reporting.
A separate slide, titled “Special Segregation of Passengers”, shows that out of 2,272 requests, 872 religious differences were given, of which WestJet accounted for 633.
Other carriers were far behind, with Swap at 50, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines at 49, and Air Transat at 39. Acceptance and rejection rates for individual carriers are not provided.
Although Air Canada did not appear on the “Top 5 Companies” chart for religious exemptions, it ranked third for denials under all types of exceptions and modes of transportation, offering none. Flyer Airlines recorded 350 denials, VIA Rail 347 and Air Canada 251.
The travel vaccination order issued by Transport Canada on Oct. 30 does not allow compassionate exemptions, but allows carriers to grant medical and religious exemptions to comply with human rights laws.
The Liberal government suspended the domestic travel order on June 20 but said it could be reinstated depending on the situation.
‘Inevitable Litigation’
Air Canada has pushed back against the government’s decision to delegate responsibility for granting religious exceptions to carriers, citing constitutional concerns and disproportionate treatment of travelers. The evidence shows that the airline was given zero religious freedom in mid-April.
Some of Air Canada’s concerns were raised in a letter sent to parliamentarians in December from the industry association of which it is a part, the National Airlines Council of Canada, and reported by the Globe and Mail.
“Private companies in the private sector are not responsible for determining whether a person’s religious beliefs are ‘adequate’ to be exempt from federally mandated public health obligations, nor do companies have the means to evaluate a person’s religious beliefs,” the letter reported.
Concerns specific to Air Canada are now part of court documents as a travel order.
Attached to Little’s testimony are emails exchanged between Transport Minister Omar Algabra and Air Canada Executive Vice President and Legal Officer Mark Barbaugh.
In a Nov. 26 letter to Algabra and Justice Minister David Lametty, Barbeau said Air Canada supports the vaccination mandate and that religious exemptions “could be sought as a matter of public policy.”
The airline, however, has “firmly” submitted that the responsibility for granting religious exemptions should not be given to airlines.
“The proposed temporary injunction is unconstitutionally flawed in its enforcement of the religious exemption,” Barbeau wrote.
Barbau said that the government should fulfill its direct responsibility to ensure that the religious freedom of passengers is respected.
They went so far as to call the plan an “illegal delegation” that would “severely” harm the vaccine mandate and lead to “inevitable litigation.”
Algebra response
In a Dec. 3 response to Barbeau, Air Canada said the delegation of authority is not illegal because it is subject to the Canadian Human Rights Act (CHRA).
“Rather than being a delegation of authority, the intent and effect of the provisions in your letter are merely to acknowledge the obligations imposed on carriers under the CHRA and to provide sufficient accommodations for carriers to lawfully accommodate passengers as required by law,” he wrote.
The government described its travel vaccination mandate as “unique in the world” in terms of its strength and ruled out compassionate exemptions for people looking to care for a relative or attend a funeral. It allows service providers to self-license because they are required to comply with the CHRA.
Barbeau was not satisfied with Algabra’s response and sent another letter on 7 December.
“The administration of liberty must be carried out by a single governmental agency, not only by different operators, even in good faith, who cannot act in a uniform manner, and who lack the necessary information.” Based on the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the government will defend against any challenges to such freedoms,” he wrote.
Algabra responded several months later on March 17, reiterating the arguments previously advanced.
Different approaches
According to Transport Canada data, different carriers have taken different courses when it comes to granting religious exemptions.
The Epoch Times reached out to WestJet for comment on the policies it uses to grant religious exemptions at what appears to be a faster rate than other carriers, but a response was not available by press time.
While Air Canada has not taken a public position on the restrictions affecting the industry due to COVID-19, WestJet did this spring as pressure mounted on the federal government.
Chief executive Alexis von Honsbruch, who took over at the helm of WestJet in February, publicly criticized the travel mask mandate in April and the vaccine mandate in late May.
“Because vaccines are not preventing the spread of the virus [Omicron]There is no further logic to protect it, “von Hoensbroech He said on Twitter..
‘uneven’
A veteran lawyer specializing in freedom of religion and conscience said there was “inconsistency in reasoning” regarding the exemption, which Air Canada did not object to because it had to review requests for medical exemptions.
Barry W. Bussey, CEO of the First Freedom Foundation (Canada), said, “If the government doesn’t have the authority to delegate to review and grant religious freedoms, the same can be said for medical freedoms.” .
According to Transport Canada’s April data, Air Canada issued 50 “necessary care or emergency” and 170 “medical prevention” exemptions.
Bsey pointed out that Air Canada has been hosting religious groups for years by offering food options, and if it does not do so, it may face human rights complaints.
“The result was that religious claimants were discriminated against, but those with medical conditions were not,” Bussey said.
The Epoch Times reached out to Air Canada for comment but did not hear back.
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Noye Chartier is a reporter for The Epoch Times in Montreal. Twitter: @NChartierET Gettr: @nchartieret
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