Federal Labor-Management Information System.Labor Management Relations Toggle submenu.Federal Workforce Priorities Report (FWPR).Human Capital Management Toggle submenu.Frequently Asked Questions for Hybrid Work Environment.Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Toggle submenu.Selective Placement Program Coordinator.Data, Analysis & Documentation Toggle submenu.General Schedule Qualification Standards.General Schedule Qualification Policies.Classifying Federal Wage System Positions.Classification & Qualifications Toggle submenu.Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at more stories like this, check our news page. ‘His belief is therefore in conflict with the fundamental rights of others, such as Article 2, right to life (defined as “no-one shall be deprived of his life intentionally”).’ Refusing to wear a mask and passing on Covid could potentially affect someone else’s right to life, Judge Coll said.ĭismissing his claim, she concluded: ‘ seems to recognise that his exercising his human rights in relation to not wearing a mask could cause a problem to those who were vulnerable. She added that Mr Burch would not know if he were infected with Covid and could therefore come into contact with a vulnerable person without knowing.įor a belief to be recognised under equality laws, adhering to it cannot infringe on other people’s rights, the hearing was told. The judge said a belief must be ‘more than a collection of concepts’. not wearing a mask) in order to ensure that one facet of breathing without disturbance or restriction was preserved.’ The belief was referred to and was centred on himself and the one step he was taking (i.e. ‘It is not at the heart of interaction between humans. ‘It does not relate to other aspects of daily living such as diet, clothing, consumption, travel, financial needs and resources, and relationships. ‘The claimed belief does not affect how he lives his life or perceives the world,’ she said. She described the position as ‘a narrow belief’. ‘It was causing me anxiety and personal harm to be told to wear a mask – there are government exemptions.’ More: Trending ‘I knew that my belief was real,’ he said. Mr Burch told the hearing he had ‘dedicated himself’ to his belief, and ‘hadn’t wavered’ by ‘routinely’ refusing to wear a mask. ‘I believe if cloth masks stopped the transmission of disease, humans would have worked that out when cloth was first invented.
Giving evidence at a preliminary hearing, Mr Burch said of his views: ‘I formed the belief based on the fact no-one wore a mask ever in the entirety of human existence. Mr Burch believed that as a ‘sovereign being who has a right to breathe freely and should not be subjected to arbitrary and pointless rules which have prevented from so doing, whilst having no basis in science and for which there is no supporting evidence’. ‘My claim here is that I have an inherent right to “breathe freely”, a phrase I use both metaphorically and literally.’ ‘I understood this mandate to be an extraordinary regulation in the UK and, like all other Covid-19 restrictions and mandates, alien to my understanding as to what it is to live in a liberal democracy.
I was distressed by this new regulation,’ he said. ‘In July 2020, the government mandated the wearing of face masks in indoor public places. This was rejected by his training captain, but when Mr Burch refused to comply, he was ‘stood down’ and placed on unpaid leave, it was heard. However, the night before the flight, he had a ‘major stress reaction’ after being sent a copy of the airline’s policy by his training captain requiring him to wear a mask on board.įor his next scheduled training duty, Mr Burch reported to work without a mask, claiming he was ‘exempt’ from wearing one. When the country went into lockdown in 2020, British Airways furloughed a number of pilots, who were paid a reduced salary as they were not required to fly, the hearing was told.Īfter 20 months on reduced pay, Mr Burch was invited to return to work but had to complete a course which included a training flight in February 2022 to Miami.
The tribunal in Watford, Hertfordshire, heard Mr Burch had worked for the airline since 1996, first as a short-haul flight captain and then as a long-haul senior first officer where he flew Boeing 747s.
0 kommentar(er)
