UPDATE: On Friday, January 31, U.S. District Judge Charles Atchley Jr. issued a final ruling in the religious discrimination lawsuit brought by former Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee employee Tanja Benton.
The court ordered BCBST to pay Benton a total of $502,380.65 in damages.
After the original June 2024 verdict, BCBST filed a Renewed Motion for Judgment as a Matter of Law following Benton's initial ruling.
The motion sought to challenge the jury's verdict and reduce the punitive damages award, according to a news release.
The final award of $502,380.65 includes back pay, compensatory damages, and the adjusted punitive damages.
PREVIOUS STORY: A federal jury in Tennessee awarded Tanja Benton, a former employee of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee (BCBST), over $680,000 after the insurer did not accommodate her religious exemption to the COVID-19 vaccine mandate, according to documents obtained by Local 3 News.
Detailed list of damages = $687,240 in total
- $177,240 in back pay damages
- $10,000 in compensatory damages
- $500,000 in punitive damages (separate verdict)
Additionally, a group of employees terminated by BCBST over a Title VII violation regarding religious discrimination are also currently in a class action suit against the employer.
Between October and November 2021, BCBST terminated 41 of their 900 customer service employees after enforcing a COVID-19 vaccine mandate and denying their religious exemptions.
The company also denied requests to work from home, an option already available for a year at the time.
The mass layoffs came weeks ahead of a Tennessee law that would prevent the company from carrying out the mandate.
