BlueCross BlueShield Of TN Mandates Vaccines Even For Remote Workers

Photo Credit: BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee / Facebook

The Tennessee Conservative [By Paula Gomes] –

The Tennessee Conservative has been contacted by several remote employees who work for BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee (BCBST) who are concerned about the company’s latest mandate, announced on Thursday. 

According to the OSHA-ETS rule that was published on Friday, 100% remote workers are exempt from vaccine mandates but BCBST is requiring its remote employees to be vaccinated because they are following the stricter federal guidelines that only exempt those with a medical or religious exception. 

BCBST, based in Chattanooga, announced that all remaining unvaccinated employees must receive the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine by December 8th. BCBST recently lost 41 employees after requiring around 900, who were in direct contact with the public, to be vaccinated by November 3rd. 

One concerned employee reported to us that BCBST is writing up or firing employees for contacting the Human Resources department over the recently announced mandate. Those employees that submit questions to Human Resources are then subjected to a meeting between the employee, a HR rep, director of HR and a lawyer for BCBST. The employee is not allowed to have a lawyer present. 

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Another employee told us that some workers have been fired for making comments about the mandate on BCBST internal website and two people have confirmed that at least one employee was fired for contacting the Governor’s office.

One employee who wrote to her representatives when the special session was called last week, and whose email was read during the special session was written up for breaking BCBST Social Media policy and terminated. 

These are the kinds of actions that the omnibus bill sought to protect Tennesseans against but because an exemption for any business that receives federal funding was added to the bill, these BCBST employees have few options left open to them.

One option is to apply for a religious or medical exemption, but one employee that spoke to us on condition of anonymity reported that all religious and medical exemptions were denied after the first round of employees were mandated to receive the vaccine. 

Employees were sent an email outlining the process for applying for an exemption. After submitting them, they were told there was not enough proof to determine if an exemption was allowed. BCBST then offered an accommodation of 30 days, during which time these employees could change their mind and get vaccinated, or find another role in the company which didn’t require a COVID-19 vaccine (now no longer an option as BCBST is requiring all remaining employees get vaccinated, even remote workers.) As the accommodation deadline of November 3rd approached, employees were given anywhere from 4.5 hours to 24 hours to have proof of being vaccinated uploaded in their Workday system or be terminated. No additional proof for exemptions would be accepted.

With the likely possibility that an exemption will be denied, the only hope left to these BCBST employees is the bill sitting on Governor Lee’s desk waiting to be signed that would at least allow them to receive unemployment after they lose their jobs. 

About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and contributor to The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.