Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

CoronavirusVaccinationsEmployment lawLatest NewsHuman rights

No jab, no job policies: the legal issues

by Darren Newman 18 May 2021
by Darren Newman 18 May 2021 Photo: Elena Zajchikova / Shutterstock
Photo: Elena Zajchikova / Shutterstock

XpertHR consultant editor Darren Newman examines the ongoing debate about whether employers can insist on employees being vaccinated against Covid-19 – a policy pithily summarised as no jab, no job.

So can an employer insist on vaccination? Almost inevitably – it depends. Clearly, requiring someone to be vaccinated is a very different proposition from requiring them to take a Covid-19 test or wear protective equipment.

Being told to inject a substance into your body is clearly a much more intrusive requirement than wearing a mask or even taking a Covid-19 test. There is a human rights issue here.

No-one could have been surprised when an employment tribunal found that a lorry driver was fairly dismissed when he refused to comply with an instruction to wear a facemask while on a client’s site (Kubilius v Kent Foods Ltd). The client banned the lorry driver from its site and the tribunal found that dismissal was within the range of reasonable responses.relx_copyright – This article is Brightmine content – Copyright 2024 LexisNexis Risk Solutions

Whether there really was a need for a mask to be worn while the driver was sitting in his own lorry is really neither here nor there. It was clearly misconduct to refuse to comply (despite repeated requests) with the rules in place on the client’s site.

Wearing a face mask may be uncomfortable and the employee may have disagreed with the client’s assessment that he needed to wear it even when he was sitting alone in his lorry cab but there was no suggestion that the mask would have caused the employee any harm – he just didn’t want to wear it.

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

OptOut
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

A vaccination is different. It is not just something that is worn during the working day and can then be discarded. Being told to inject a substance into your body is clearly a much more intrusive requirement than wearing a mask or even taking a Covid-19 test. There is a human rights issue here.

Continue reading the full article on XpertHR

Darren Newman

Darren Newman qualified as a barrister in 1990, and has represented both employers and employees at tribunal. He provides straightforward practical guidance on a wide range of employment law issues. Darren also works as a consultant editor for XpertHR.

previous post
Vacancies reach pandemic high, but young still losing out
next post
Long Covid compensation decision could take more than a year

You may also like

Restaurant tips should be included in holiday pay

21 May 2025

Fewer workers would comply with a return-to-office mandate

21 May 2025

Redefining leadership: From competence to inclusion

21 May 2025

Pay awards in real terms could fall for...

21 May 2025

Ryanair demands flight attendants pay back salary increase

21 May 2025

Consultation launched after Supreme Court ‘sex’ ruling

20 May 2025

Uncertainty over law hampering legal use of medical...

20 May 2025

Black security manager awarded £360k after decade of...

20 May 2025

Employers ‘worryingly’ ignorant about stress risk assessments

20 May 2025

UK and EU agree to collaborate on ‘youth...

19 May 2025

  • 2025 Employee Communications Report PROMOTED | HR and leadership...Read more
  • The Majority of Employees Have Their Eyes on Their Next Move PROMOTED | A staggering 65%...Read more
  • Prioritising performance management: Strategies for success (webinar) WEBINAR | In today’s fast-paced...Read more
  • Self-Leadership: The Key to Successful Organisations PROMOTED | Eletive is helping businesses...Read more
  • Retaining Female Talent: Four Ways to Reduce Workplace Drop Out PROMOTED | International Women’s Day...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2025

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2025 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+