An employer might want all its workers to get the COVID-19 vaccine. But it must sometimes yield to the requirement that it accommodate legitimate requests for a religious exemption. Employers that don’t allow for such requests to be made – or don’t evaluate them properly – can quickly find themselves smack in the middle of […]
With the current COVID-19 surge, more people are needing tests than ever before. The high demand has made COVID-19 tests difficult to come by, and many are forced to wait hours just to be tested. At-home COVID-19 tests are a more convenient (though less accurate) option for people struggling to secure a testing appointment, and […]
Good news, employers. If you have an employee who tested positive for COVID-19 but isn’t showing symptoms, they can come back to work sooner now, according to updated guidance from the CDC. The recommended isolation time for COVID-19-positive people used to be 10 days, regardless of whether the person had symptoms or not. But in […]
After several employees filed an injunction claiming United Airlines’ COVID-19 vaccine mandate failed to accommodate workers wanting an exemption, a Texas federal judge dismissed the case. The lawsuit claimed employees were retaliated against for seeking exemptions, which the judge also ruled wasn’t true. Here’s a breakdown of the case. ‘Irreparable harm’ When United Airlines announced […]
With more employers enacting mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policies — and OSHA’s emergency temporary standard (ETS) requiring many companies to have these policies in place by January — some employees are going to extreme measures to get out of it. Many workers try to avoid vaccination mandates by citing religious beliefs or medical conditions that prevent […]
A New Mexico federal judge refused to block a vaccine mandate for certain workers from going into effect. The court said data show the vaccines are safe and effective. It also said the vaccines provide immunity that “is significantly more robust than natural immunity gained following infection.” Right now, the Delta variant causes almost all […]
A new COVID-19 variant, Omicron, has been detected, and is very likely to start cropping up in the United States. In order to get on top of the spread, the CDC has issued an update on Omicron. It’s important for employers to familiarize themselves with the new variant in order to protect the workplace more […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) made waves ever since it announced its Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), which would require businesses with a hundred or more employees to implement COVID-19 vaccine mandates. Since the ETS announcement, there has been legal pushback. Most recently, the 5th Circuit temporarily suspended OSHA’s ETS, saying that OSHA “claimed […]
If your firm has more than 100 employees and you don’t already require COVID-19 vaccines, get ready. You will soon have to thanks to a vaccine mandate by President Biden. On Sept. 9, President Biden announced, “The Department of Labor is developing an emergency rule to require all employers with 100 or more employees that […]
With OSHA’s emergency temporary standard (ETS) in place and going into effect in Jan. 2022, many employees have begun to push back against the COVID-19 vaccine mandate. Most recently, a religious group petitioned the 5th Circuit to put a stop to OSHA’s ETS, saying imposing the COVID-19 vaccine mandate would violate religious workers’ beliefs. Here’s […]
The EEOC has issued new guidance addressing religious objections to workplace COVID-19 vaccination requirements. This updated EEOC guidance discusses the interplay between vaccine requirements and Title VII. Title VII applies to employers with at least 15 employees. It does not say those employers must require vaccinations. Instead, it explains that they may require vaccinations, subject […]
Recently, Delta airlines made headlines. I’m sure your know why! It revealed employees enrolled in its health plan would have to pay a $200 surcharge, if they didn’t get the COVID-19 vaccine. This decision caused a lot of conversation, and many employers found themselves asking if they could implement that too. The quick answer is […]
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