However, the Court recognized that Sampson left open the door in cases when "the circumstances surrounding an employee's discharge, together with the resultant effect on the employee, so far depart from the normal situation that irreparable injury might be found." Dkt. Under Supreme Court and Seventh Circuit precedent, this was not enough to warrant the extraordinary remedy of a temporary restraining order. In that order, the Court noted that "the only 'immediate' harm that Plaintiffs have established with the requisite degree of certainty at this time is financial harm resulting from unpaid leave." Dkt. The motion for a temporary restraining order was denied on November 12, 2021. 4 at 10, and sought a temporary restraining order against Ascension. Plaintiffs filed claims with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleging religious discrimination, dkt. Halczenko and the other named Plaintiffs were placed on leave effective November 12, 2021. at ¶¶ 45, 50, informing him that "providing an exemption to a Pediatric Intensivist working with acutely ill pediatric patients poses more than a de minims burden to the hospital because the vaccine provides an additional level of protection in mitigating the risk associated with COVID." Id.
Halczenko applied for an exemption based on his sincerely held religious beliefs. After Ascension announced that employees must be vaccinated against COVID-19 unless granted a religious or medical exemption, Dr. Halczenko asserts that the careful maintenance of these skills through practice and regular repetition "can literally make the difference between life and death" for his patients. Halczenko, the Court declines to consider relief on behalf of any class or sub-class. Because the only claims before the Court at this time are specific to Dr. Halczenko must be skilled "beyond basic technical skills and must be able to perform complex tasks on critically ill infants Plaintiffs sought injunctive relief on behalf of several putative sub-classes of Ascension employees affected by the vaccine mandate and exemption policy, but have not moved for class certification. His specialty requires that he work in a hospital setting, specifically in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU)-of which there are only three in Indiana including two in the Indianapolis area. Vincent's Peyton Manning Children's Hospital. Paul Halczenko worked as a pediatric critical care physician at Ascension St. Consequently, the Court bases its factual findings on the parties' written submissions. 25 at 2, no hearing was held on Plaintiffs' motion for a preliminary injunction. Facts & Background By agreement of the parties, dkt. 2 For the reasons explained below, that motion is DENIED. Halczenko's request that Ascension immediately reinstate him to his position. Accordingly, the Court addresses only Dr. Halczenko remains suspended and has not been informed that he will be reinstated. Those Plaintiffs have thus withdrawn their requests for preliminary injunctive relief, dkt. Paul Halczenko-that they had been recalled and could return to their respective positions. But in mid-December, Ascension reversed course and informed all but one Plaintiff-Dr. Ascension had previously informed Plaintiffs that their employment would be permanently terminated on January 4, 2022, if they were still The Court uses "Ascension" only as an identifier of Defendants, not as a statement on the legal employer-employee relationships among any parties. The Court denied that motion on November 12, 2021, and Ascension put Plaintiffs on unpaid leave the same day. Plaintiffs sought a temporary restraining order prohibiting Ascension from putting them on unpaid leave and terminating their employment. Plaintiffs each requested an exemption from the vaccination requirement based on their religious beliefs. 1:21-cv-02816-JPH-MG ORDER DENYING MOTION FOR PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION Ascension 1 adopted a policy requiring its employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19. VINCENT HOSPITAL AND HEALTH CARE CENTER, INC. 50 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF INDIANA INDIANAPOLIS DIVISION PAUL HALCZENKO Dr., JENNIFER JIMENEZ, ERIN NICOLE GILLESPIE, VALERIE FRALIC, KRISTIN EVANS on behalf of Themselves and all those similarly situated, Plaintiffs, v.
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