Gresham Area Chamber Of Commerce And Visitors Center: National COVID Vaccine Mandate For Larger Employers

Press release from Gresham Area Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Center:

2021-11-07

Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is issuing an emergency temporary standard (ETS) to protect unvaccinated employees of large employers (100 or more employees) from the risk of contracting COVID-19 by strongly encouraging vaccination.

It is believed that over 84 million employees will be subject to this rule, though about 3/5s of subject workers are already vaccinated. Oregon has the authority to create its own rules related to occupational health and safety, but OR-OSHA is likely to adopt and/ or consider many of the federal vaccine rule components below.

• Federal Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS):
• Workers must be fully vaccinated by January

• Employers with 100+ must adopt a vaccination and/or testing and masking policy.
• Employees must receive paid time off to get vaccinated and recover from any side effects of the vaccine.
• Employers are not required to pay for weekly testing.
• Collective bargaining agreements and/or state law may determine otherwise.
• Unvaccinated workers must wear face coverings while on the job.
• Many health care workers are subject to a different rule and cannot test out of the vaccination requirement.

Federal OSHA’s website (https://www.osha.gov/coronavirus/ets2) includes a fact sheet, summary of the ETS 2 standard, and FAQ.

The State of Oregon's Approach

• Employers with 50+, 100+, or combination of employer threshold and high COVID-hazard industry
• Should testing be an available option, and if so:
• Payment of test
• Testing records retention
• Testing frequency
• Type of acceptable tests

The ETS was officially filed in the Office of the Federal Register on June 17, 2021, and it became effective when it was published on June 21, 2021.  In October, to assess the ongoing need for an Emergency Temporary Standard for healthcare and related industries, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has reviewed the latest guidance, science and data on COVID-19 and has consulted with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (through the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) (NIOSH)). OSHA has determined that the requirements of the healthcare ETS released on June 10, 2021, remain necessary to address the grave danger of COVID-19 in healthcare. OSHA will continue to monitor and assess the need for changes in the healthcare ETS each month.

Quick Links and COVID Resources

This press release was produced by Gresham Area Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Center. The views expressed here are the author’s own.