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Court Upholds $7.8 Million Verdict for Transit Workers Fired for Refusing COVID-19 Vaccine
A federal judge in California has rejected an effort by Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) to overturn a jury verdict that awarded $7.8 million to six former employees who were fired for refusing to comply with the agency’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate on religious grounds.
In a Dec. 30, 2024 order, Judge William A. Alsup of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California acknowledged minor “imperfections” in the jury trial — including flawed instructions to the jurors — and determined they were not severe enough to invalidate the jury’s October 2024 decision requiring BART to pay each of the six former workers between $1.2 million and $1.5 million.
Alsup denied BART’s post-trial motions to overturn the verdict and seek a new trial, saying that the agency failed to demonstrate that accommodating the employees’ religious objections would have posed an undue hardship.
“Simply put, on the instructions given and evidence received, a reasonable jury could have found that BART had not carried its burden of proving its affirmative defense,” Alsup wrote, referring to the fact that, in order to prevail in the case, BART had to prove that granting accommodations such as masking, testing, or remote work in lieu of vaccination would have imposed an undue burden on the agency.
Federal Judge Rules for Pfizer in Lawsuit Over Company’s COVID-19 Vaccine
A federal judge has thrown out a lawsuit brought by Texas against Pfizer, finding that U.S. law protects Pfizer due to the emergency declared over the COVID-19 pandemic. Several laws shield Pfizer from claims that it misrepresented the efficacy of its vaccine, U.S. District Judge Sam R. Cummings said in the Dec. 30, 2024 ruling.
“The Court finds that as a matter of law under the circumstances of this case, the Defendant is entitled to immunity under the Public Readiness and Emergency Act (PREP Act),” Cummings wrote.
He also said that both the PREP Act and the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, preempt the allegations from Texas. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in 2023 brought the suit in county court, alleging Pfizer misrepresented the results of the clinical trial that tested its COVID-19 vaccine. Pfizer and its partner promoted the vaccine as 95% effective against COVID-19 infection, but the companies relied on just two months of trial data.
Faces and Fingers Are the New Car Keys
In today’s market, new car buyers want technologies and conveniences that save them time and lend themselves to personalization. These technologies can be as simple as keyless access to their locked car or as complex as phone-as-key technology that allows drivers to just get in their vehicle and go, without having to turn a key or touch a stop-start button.
The next frontier in car customization is biometrics. Systems with technology, that use measurable physical characteristics or personal behavior traits to identify a user, allow a car owner to unlock, open, customize and/or start their vehicle just by using their face or fingerprints. It can be used for access and ignition, and to load a driver’s personal profile.
Analysis by Global Industry Analysis, a market research company, estimated in 2022 that the global market for biometric technology will reach $44.1 billion by 2026.
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Biometric Ticketing for Sports and Live Events Set To Explode in 2025
2024 was arguably the year in which sports finally became a major market for biometrics. While experiments with biometric ticketing and event entry have been run for years, this year saw league-wide deployments of facial biometrics for credentialing, and new use cases in concession, merchandise and biometric alcohol sales. European football loves biometrics; so does its American counterpart in the National Football League, or NFL.
Wicket, Veridas, Clear and NEC are among the firms leading the biometric charge. But with the global live events industry pegged to be worth $754.04 billion by 2030, there is plenty of room for growth and innovation. Recent survey results show almost half of venues (47%) consider biometrics a top initiative for 2025.
A new market intelligence report from PYMNTS looks at how “Novel ID Verification Technologies in Stadiums Can Change the Game Beyond Sports.”
TSA Targets 400 US Airports for Biometrics Rollout
America’s network of airport biometric systems now includes hundreds of airports but is slated to reach hundreds more in the years ahead.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection, or CBP, has deployed its Biometric Facial Comparison system to 238 airports, including all 14 CBP Preclearance and 49 international departure locations. A list of airports provided by CBP shows that 14 of the 238 airports are outside of the country.
CBP says more airport partners are joining its Biometric Exit program every month, and passenger responses have “been overwhelmingly positive.”
The Transportation Security Administration, meanwhile, has now deployed second-generation Credential Authentication Technology (CAT-2) scanners from Idemia I&S with face biometrics to “nearly 84 airports” across the country. TSA plans to bring CAT-2s to more than 400 U.S. airports in the years ahead. The figures are included in a fact sheet prepared by the TSA as part of its public awareness drive.
