“On again.” No, it’s not a 90’s Rom-Com; it’s sometimes how our legal process works. Late Friday Dec. 17, 2021, the 6th Circuit Ct. of Appeals dissolved the 5th Circuit’s stay regarding OSHA’s COVID-19 vaccine ETS.*
If reading that previous sentence caused your brain to pause and re-read, never fear. For a brief lesson in legal acronyms, not to mention a review of the ETS saga, please read our previous blog posts outlining the original compliance standards and the 5th Circuit’s opinion: Nov. 5, 2021, and Dec. 1, 2021.
OSHA is (as stated in their announcement) “gratified” to begin implementation of the vaccine mandate applicable to private employers with 100+ employees. Due to recent (and continuing) ** litigation, the ETS compliance deadline is now extended to Jan. 10th from Jan. 4th, 2022. Furthermore, OSHA will not begin citations related to the ETS’ testing deadlines until Feb. 9, 2022 – with the caveat that employers exercise “reasonable, good faith efforts to become compliant.”
Private employers with 100+ employees must begin (or continue, as the case may be) finalizing workplace policies regarding vaccine testing – not to mention preparations for verification and tracking of weekly testing for unvaccinated persons.
*ETS = Emergency Temporary Standard; OSHA = Occupational Safety and Health Administration
**Friday’s decision has been appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court; subscribe to our blog to stay informed of the next chapter in the saga.