A longtime Long Beach Harbor Department employee has settled his lawsuit in which the Christian Scientist alleged the city refused to accommodate him for his religious objection to the 2021 city employee coronavirus vaccination and testing mandates.
Plaintiff Jeremy Groves said in his Los Angeles Superior Court that the alleged religious discrimination and retaliation forced him to take a stress-related leave of absence, resulting in lost income and retirement benefits. On Jan. 30, Groves’ attorneys filed court papers with Judge Robert B. Broadbelt notifying him of an “unconditional” resolution of the lawsuit. No terms were divulged.
In their court papers, attorneys for the city denied Groves’ allegations and said the city’s conduct was privileged, justified and undertaken in good faith in accordance with the City Charter, the Municipal Code as well as civil service and departmental rules and regulations.
Groves worked for the Harbor Department for more than 25 years. In September 2021, he submitted a request to be exempted from the city’s saliva coronavirus testing requirement based on his religious beliefs because he objected to giving samples from his body, the suit stated. He offered at least six alternative accommodations to weekly samplings and he maintained that the city failed to engage and accommodate his objections.
As a result, Groves suffered severe stress and anxiety and he was forced to take a leave of absence from CLB from June 2022 though April 2023, causing him to suffer significant financial hardship, including loss of income and retirement benefits as well as paid time off, the suit stated.
In November 2022, while Groves was on leave, the city lifted the testing and vaccination mandate for employees, but failed to notify the plaintiff or engage him in a plan to return him to work, according to the suit.