A question that is top of mind as Covid-19 restrictions are being lifted nationwide, and employers begin to implement return to the office policies, is whether employers could, and should, impose a Covid-19 vaccination mandate on their employees. On the flip side, employees are asking: can my employer force me to get vaccinated, and what can they do if I refuse? Here’s what you need to know.
The U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission released updated guidance Friday on vaccination mandates, privacy questions and whether employers can demand proof that an employee received the COVID-19 vaccine.
First published on
Dive Brief:
Federal equal employment opportunity laws do not prohibit policies requiring that all employees who physically enter a workplace receive a COVID-19 vaccination, so long as such policies comply with the reasonable accommodation provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act as well as other applicable laws, according to technical assistance from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission updated May 28.
Title VII and the ADA require employers to provide reasonable accommodations for employees who, because of a disability or a sincerely held religious belief, practice, or observance, do not get vaccinated for COVID-19, unless providing an accommodation would pose an undue hardship on the operation of the employer s business, EEOC said. Employers with such a requirement also may need to respond to allegations that the requirement has a disparate impact on, or disproportionately excludes, an employee based o
Published: Jun 01, 2021 By Mark Terry
News continues to come out about COVID-19, including support for an investigation into the origins of the virus, a new naming system, and legal discussions of whether employers can mandate vaccination. Here’s a look.
WHO Creates Naming System for COVID-19 Variants
The
developed a new way to identify COVID-19 variants. The rationale was to get away from place-of-origin names, such as South African variant or UK variant, which can be stigmatizing as well as potentially inaccurate. For example, researchers now believe the 1918 Spanish flu may have originated in Kansas or France.
The other reason is the complexity and potential confusion of the scientific system, where the UK variant is G.1.1.7, the South African is B.1.351, for example. The new system will use Greek letters so that the UK variant will be Alpha, the South African variant will be Beta, and the India variant will be Delta, and so on. You can expect the media to co
The New York law firm Siri & Glimstad is fighting mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations with litigation and warning letters dispatched to schools and employers.