A federal judge in Texas sided with United Airlines in a legal challenge to stop its vaccine mandate.
Six employees filed a lawsuit to block the mandate.
The judge ruled that United Airlines can legally impose a vaccine mandate that only gives unpaid leave for workers who get medical or religious exemption.
U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman said in the ruling: "it is not for the court to decide if United’s vaccine mandate is bad policy. Rather, it is the court’s role to determine if plaintiffs carried their burden to obtain a preliminary injunction."
The Judge was critical of United over a ‘callous’ policy to employees seeking religious exemptions but the company has the right to impose it.
The plaintiffs argued United violated the law by not giving exempted employees an alternative to vaccinations such as regular testing and wearing masks.
Following the ruling United said it will offer exempted workers ‘non-customer facing roles where they can apply and continue working until it is safe for them to their return to their current positions.’
