The New York Times has a business-advice column, and Teri in Atlanta wrote to Roxane Gay about an employee who thinks COVID is a hoax and complains about all the company’s safety rules — but has “begrudgingly followed our protocols.” The letter-writer, a co-owner and manager of this company, “snapped” at this employee and then apologized.
Gay’s advice: Can her. “She is entitled to her beliefs but when she is at work, she must comply with whatever health protocols you put in place. If she chooses not to comply, it’s time to end her employment. You don’t want to expose your customers, other employees or yourself to the virus or such toxic ignorance.” But . . . the letter said that she does comply with the protocols. The columnist’s real position seems to be that anyone who expresses the view that COVID is a hoax — indeed, “[a]nyone who refuses to believe in science” — should be fired. The good news is that Teri seems more tolerant.