As companies work through new federal rules requiring many employers to implement vaccine mandates in the workplace, one of the biggest speed bumps in the process for HR departments and managers may be employee requests for religious exemptions.
The Biden administration is requiring COVID-19 vaccines for federal employees, contractors, health care workers and even employees at private companies with 100 or more workers.
Federal employees will need to be vaccinated by Nov. 22, while federal contractors, health care workers and employees at private companies have until Jan. 4, 2022 to get the jab. Private employers, however, can opt instead to have unvaccinated employees undergo weekly COVID-19 testing, according to the emergency temporary standard (ETS) issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) earlier this month.
That’s if the ETS can survive the legal challenges opponents have leveled against it. The Fifth Circuit already ruled to block OSHA’s vaccine mandate, but the case has been reassigned to the Sixth Circuit court for review. It won’t really won’t be over, though, until the fat lady sings—or in this case, when the Supreme Court rules on whether OSHA’s mandate is viable.
Since a verdict from the Supreme Court will likely take place after some of the ETS deadlines, many employers are already working to comply with the new requirements. One of the thorniest issues they must navigate is workers’ requests for COVID 19 vaccine exemption because it...
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