As new federal emergency rules about worker vaccinations and testing came down from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), employers with 100 or more employees will now have to start making a game plan to ensure they meet the safety requirements, and they’ll need to do it pretty quickly.
Christine Crews from the Employment Association Forum spoke to us about some of the struggles employers may face trying to put these policies in place before the OSHA deadline.
“Collecting information about who's vaccinated, who's not vaccinated,” she said. “There are several obstacles that employers are facing. The timeline in creating their policy and procedure, communicating that to employees.”
In a press release, OSHA said the rules are effective immediately after being published in the Federal Register. The release says, “Employers must comply with most requirements within 30 days of publication and with testing requirements within 60 days of publication.”
The requirements in the release say that employers must: Determine the vaccination status of each employee, obtain acceptable proof of vaccination status from vaccinated employees and maintain records and a roster of each employee's vaccination status.
They must also require employees to provide prompt notice when they test positive for COVID-19 or receive a COVID-19 diagnosis. Employers must then remove the employee from the workplace, regardless of vaccination status; employers must not allow them to return to work until they meet the required criteria.
The requirements go on to say employers must ensure each worker who is not fully vaccinated is tested for COVID-19 at least weekly (if the worker is in the workplace at least once a week) or within 7 days before returning to work (if the worker is away from the workplace for a week or longer). And, ensure that, in most circumstances, each employee who has not been fully vaccinated wears a face covering when indoors or when occupying a vehicle with another person for work purposes.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Attorney General Ashley Moody said the state plans to sue the federal government over the rules.
As of right now, the governor hasn’t put anything in place to prevent employers from mandating vaccines, but if he does, what happens?
“At the state level, we have not yet seen, for private sector employers, the prohibition against requiring vaccinations,” Crews said. “Even if that does come down the line, and we see something introduced in an emergency session of the state legislature, an employer is going to have to make a decision whether they rely on state law or federal law, and which one is going to have the most ‘teeth’ if you will.”
Employers could face fines of $14,000 for violations if they don’t follow the rules.
OSHA has some templates online to help employers maneuver the process of implementing the rules on time. Crews also suggest employers quickly find a webinar with a reputable employment law attorney to make sure they know what they need to do to successfully adhere to the rules.