On December 17, 2021, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals lifted the stay on the OSHA Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) requiring employers with 100 or more employees to require employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 or to test weekly and mask. Additional details about the ETS are summarized in our November 5 e-blast. The vaccination requirements of the ETS were to take effect at the beginning of December and are technically effective now. OSHA has announced that it will not cite employers for non-compliance with the vaccine requirements of the ETS before January 10, 2022 and will not issue citations for noncompliance with the standard’s testing requirements before February 9, 2022 - as long as an employer is making reasonable, good faith efforts to come into compliance with the ETS. Minnesota employers can expect that Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry will follow suit. Several parties have filed an emergency application with the U.S. Supreme Court to block the mandate. The CMS vaccine mandate for health care workers and the vaccine mandate for federal contractors are also stayed. The federal government has asked the Supreme Court to dissolve the stay concerning the CMS mandate, and it has asked an appellate court to lift the stay of the federal contractor mandate.
Please reach out to our Employment Law team members with any questions you may have.
