A half-dozen employees suing the Department of Energy’s operations contractor for the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee are making headway in settling their case involving mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations for most workers, and a federal judge said this week he wants the matter resolved soon.
“The court notes that, at this point, almost ten months have passed since it was first reported this matter had been resolved via settlement,” U.S. District Court Judge Charles Atchley in the Eastern District of Tennessee said in a Monday ruling. While the judge agreed to extend proceedings until at least May 12, “the court strongly encourages the parties to resolve this matter soon.”
“Since the March 3, 2023 Joint Status Report, the parties have continued to exchange offers and counter-offers,” according to an updated status report by the litigants on Friday April 7. With the assistance of mediator Chad Hatmaker the parties “have been able to narrow some of the issues to be resolved … and also been able to have fruitful discussions regarding both monetary and non-monetary terms.”
The workers and UT-Battelle, the University of Tennessee-Battelle venture that manages and operates the DOE lab, asked Judge Atchley to keep the litigation paused while talks continue.
The workers at the Oak Ridge lab first filed suit back in October 2021 saying the pro-vaccination management policy resulted in them being placed on unpaid leave, despite claiming exemptions.
After informing the federal district court in June 2022 the case was essentially settled, the parties reported they had reached an impasse in September and planned to resume preparation for trial. The development did not sit well with the judge, who admonished the parties to get back to settlement talks.
