Tanja Benson

On Sunday I write about individuals who act on principle, and should be praised for this. Tanja Benton is such a person … a person who had strong religious beliefs and refused to get the COVID vaccine, based on principle.
I was always against vaccine mandates for younger individuals, and so it easy for me to admire a person who stood firmly against vaccine mandates.
(For those of you who did not believe in religious exemptions for the COVID vaccine, the question that comes up is, “Could you admire a person who stands up for what he/she believes in, if you do not believe in that same thing?” Here you could be for the person, and not necessarily for what that person believes in … but I digress.)
From the Epoch Times:
“BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee officials told Ms. Tanja Benton in August of 2021 that she would need to be ‘fully vaccinated’ to keep her position. Ms. Benton refused, saying aborted fetal cell lines were involved in the development of the COVID-19 vaccines and she couldn’t ‘in good conscience consume the vaccine, which would not only defile her body but also anger and dishonor God.’
While Ms. Benton said her position became fully remote in 2020, BlueCross BlueShield said it would have involved some in-person interaction with clients.
Ms. Benton was told to pursue other positions within the company and applied for two. But she was fired on Nov. 4, 2021, and was told five days later that, ‘Unfortunately, all positions require the vax now,’ according to an email.
Tanja Benton had worked at the firm for 16 years when she was fired.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, presented with the case, cleared Ms. Benton to sue her former employer.
Her lawsuit charged that BlueCross BlueShield violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which says an employer may not “discharge any individual, or otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment” because of that person’s religion. Employers can disregard religious exemption requests if they can prove accommodating them would create an undue hardship.
BlueCross BlueShield “cannot prove that allowing Plaintiff to continue her employment as a Bio Statistical Research Scientist without being vaccinated for COVID-19 constitutes an undue hardship,” the suit stated. The company “also cannot show that it made any good-faith efforts to accommodate plaintiff’s sincerely held religious beliefs.”
To make a long story short,Tanja Benton won her lawsuit.
She was awarded $177,240 in back pay, $10,000 in compensation, and $500,000 in punitive damages, according to a document made public by the federal court in eastern Tennessee on June 30.
Her sincere religious beliefs combined with persistence and resolve paid off for Tanja Benson.
8/4/24
www.californiacontrarian.com