Can You Be Fired for Not Getting the COVID Vaccine in Ontario?
Refusing the COVID vaccine was rarely a protected human right, but being fired over it is often a without-cause dismissal that still owes you severance. The outcome depends on the route.
Key takeaways
- Refusing the vaccine was rarely a protected human right; most Human Rights Code claims failed.
- But being fired over it is often a without-cause dismissal, which still owes severance.
- Employers frequently could not establish just cause for vaccine non-compliance.
- Many employees were placed on unpaid leave rather than dismissed outright.
- In some cases the contract was found frustrated by a government mandate.
In this article
Few workplace issues generated more confusion than the COVID-19 vaccine mandates. Employees were told they had no rights, or that refusing meant automatic dismissal with nothing owed. The legal reality that emerged in Ontario is more nuanced, and in several respects more favourable to employees, than either side often claimed. The route the employer took, discipline, unpaid leave, or dismissal, largely determines what you are owed.
✅Quick answer. Refusing a COVID-19 vaccine was generally not protected under the Human Rights Code, so most discrimination claims failed. But that did not give employers a free pass: firing someone over vaccine non-compliance was frequently a without-cause dismissal, not just cause, which means severance was still owed. Some employees were instead placed on unpaid leave, and in a few cases the contract was found to be frustrated. If you were let go over the vaccine, it is worth checking which of these actually applied.
Was refusing the vaccine a human right?
Usually not. To be protected under the Human Rights Code, a belief generally has to be part of a recognized creed or a genuine disability-related need, not a singular personal or political objection to vaccination. The Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario dealt with a wave of applications from employees who refused vaccination, in cases such as Quenneville v. University of Toronto (2025 HRTO 653) and others against major hospitals and employers, and the large majority did not succeed, because a personal preference against the vaccine was not a protected ground. Genuine medical contraindications or established creed-based objections are different and can trigger the duty to accommodate.
But is being fired for it "just cause"?
Often not. Even where the human rights argument failed, employers still had to justify a for-cause dismissal, and many could not. In Paul v. Sensient Colors (2025 ONSC 3127), an employee in a customer-facing sales role refused to disclose his vaccination status and did not comply with the policy; the employer argued this was cause. The court disagreed that it amounted to just cause and treated it as a without-cause dismissal, awarding 12 months of notice. The point is important: losing a human rights claim does not mean you lose your severance. If the employer cannot prove just cause, you are owed reasonable notice like anyone else.
Unpaid leave instead of dismissal
Many employers did not fire non-compliant staff at all, but placed them on unpaid leaves of absence, often relying on the temporary rules in force during the pandemic. In Martin v. Stainless Process Equipment Inc. (2022 ONSC 6580), an employee who was placed on unpaid leave over the vaccination policy and then let go pursued a wrongful dismissal claim, and the court assessed his damages taking into account that he found comparable work quickly. Whether an unpaid leave was lawful, or was really a constructive dismissal, depended on the employer's actual authority to impose it, which is worth reviewing rather than assuming.
Frustration of contract
In a narrower set of cases, courts found that a government or client vaccine mandate made the job impossible to perform, frustrating the contract. That was the outcome in the VuPoint case, discussed in our guide to frustration of contract, where a technician could no longer be assigned to a major client that required vaccination. Frustration can end a contract without common law notice, but it is a narrow doctrine, and even then ESA minimums may still apply, so employers cannot assume it covers every vaccine dismissal.
What can you claim?
It depends on the route your employer used. If you were dismissed and the employer cannot establish just cause, you are owed your full severance. If you were placed on an unlawful unpaid leave, that can be a constructive dismissal. If the contract was genuinely frustrated, your claim may be limited, but ESA entitlements can survive. The label the employer put on it is not the last word.
What should you do if you were let go over the vaccine?
- 1.Keep the policy, the termination or leave letter, and any communications about the deadline and consequences.
- 2.Note whether you were dismissed for cause, laid off, placed on unpaid leave, or told the contract was frustrated. Each has different consequences.
- 3.If you had a genuine medical or creed-based reason, keep the supporting documentation, since accommodation may have been required.
- 4.Do not assume you are owed nothing. A free review can tell you whether you have a severance claim.
This ties into whether the employer really had just cause, whether an unpaid leave was actually a constructive dismissal, and, for those with genuine exemptions, the duty to accommodate. If you were dismissed, the starting point is your severance.
Frequently asked questions
Can I be fired for refusing the COVID vaccine in Ontario?
An employer could act on vaccine non-compliance, but firing you over it was often a without-cause dismissal owing severance rather than just cause. Refusing the vaccine was also generally not protected under the Human Rights Code, so most discrimination claims failed.
Was refusing the vaccine protected by human rights law?
Usually not. A singular personal or political objection to vaccination was generally not a protected creed, and most Human Rights Tribunal applications failed. Genuine medical contraindications or established creed-based objections could trigger the duty to accommodate.
Do I get severance if I was fired for not being vaccinated?
Often yes. If the employer cannot establish just cause, the dismissal is treated as without cause and you are owed reasonable notice. In Paul v. Sensient Colors, an employee dismissed over vaccine non-compliance was awarded 12 months.
My employer put me on unpaid leave over the vaccine. Is that legal?
It depends on whether the employer had the authority to impose an unpaid leave. If it did not, the leave can amount to a constructive dismissal. It is worth having the situation reviewed rather than assuming the leave was lawful.
Omar Haddad
Legal Writer, Mirza Law
Omar Haddad is a legal writer at Mirza Law in Toronto. He writes about termination, medical and disability leave, and what the law protects when an employee is let go.
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