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Legal Challenges to Biden’s Vaccine Mandate Are Likely, Law Experts Say

Footwear News

President Biden’s new vaccine mandate for certain businesses has prompted various reactions from business leaders and organizations. But it remains to be seen how and if the mandate will be enforced.

The new rule, which also gives employees the option for weekly COVID-19 testing instead of the vaccine, could impact about 80 million Americans and will be enforced by The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Federal employees and employees of all federal contractors will be required to get vaccinated and will not have the option to test.

OSHA will enact the rules as an Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), an acceleration measure that has only been used 10 times in the organization’s more than 30-year history. Once the mandate is formally issued, it will be in effect for six months and will then be subject to a formal rule-making process through OSHA to make it permanent. However, the mandate will be subject to challenges from courts during this entire process.

“It is almost a certainty that once the ETS comes out, someone will challenge it before that six-month rule making period expires,” said Anthony Mingione, an employment lawyer and partner in the New York law firm Blank Rome.

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Another question that awaits to be seen is if businesses can reasonably enforce these mandates. According to Mingione, court challenges might also center around this question.

It is unclear who would pay for weekly tests as well as time off for those employees who opt out of the vaccine. It is also uncertain if businesses are expected to maintain records on employees’ vaccination and testing statuses, as it could be a burden for large businesses with thousands of employees.

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“Legal Challenges to Biden’s Vaccine Mandate Are Likely, Law Experts Say,” by Shoshy Ciment was published in Footwear News on September 15, 2021.