Kansas Republican lawmakers pass bill helping workers defy COVID mandates

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Republican lawmakers in Kansas approved a measure Monday night to make it easy for workers to claim religious exemptions from COVID-19 vaccine mandates and provide unemployment benefits to people fired for refusing the shots.

Gov. Laura Kelly said she would sign the bill, angering some fellow Democrats in the GOP-controlled Legislature. Most Democratic lawmakers opposed it, arguing that it was a symbolic measure that won’t provide any real protections for workers who refuse to get vaccinated in the face of federal mandates imposed by President Joe Biden.

The bill would require employers to grant a religious exemption to COVID-19 vaccine mandates for any worker who seeks one in writing, without second-guessing that employee. ...