A trio of former Walt Disney World employees is suing Disney for firing them for not wearing face masks or getting vaccinated against COVID-19, the first former employees to sue the company over religious discrimination.
The three ex-employees, Barbara Andreas, Stephen Cribb, and Adam Pajer, worked at Walt Disney World between seven to 20 years before getting fired, according to the lawsuit. In 2021, the plaintiffs submitted religious exemption requests over the COVID-19 vaccine, citing Biblical scripture in their requests, the lawsuit filed on June 30 read.
“Religious creed includes my dress and my grooming practices, including what I put on my head or face,” Andreas wrote in the lawsuit. “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.”
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Disney denied Andreas’s vaccine exemption on Dec. 29, 2021, while Cribb only received an auto-generated email in October 2021 that said his request was under review, according to the lawsuit. All three were fired between March and June this year, according to the lawsuit.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis prohibited private employers from mandating the COVID-19 vaccine and allowed employees to choose from numerous exemptions, such as health or religious concerns, in November 2021.
On Monday, Austal, a global shipbuilding company, was sued by 53 former employees challenging the company’s now-repealed COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The lawsuit accused Austal USA of violating the employees’ rights under the Civil Rights Act or the Americans with Disabilities Act and suggested $1 million from Austal be given to each worker in the lawsuit, according to Fox 10.
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Walt Disney World did not respond to the Washington Examiner’s request for comment.
