Since the advent of COVID-19 pandemic, employers have been faced with rapidly changing rules and regulations, at the federal, state and local level. We wanted to make readers aware that on January 26, 2022, OSHA withdrew its emergency temporary standard to require non-medical facilities with more than 100 employees to implement vaccine or testing requirements. The requirement would have required those facilities to either mandate vaccination against the SARS-CoV-2 virus or to test workers weekly.

Without citing all of the dissenting opinions on its decision, OSHA withdrew the temporary standard after being blocked to implement it by Supreme Court ruling. The mandate was in effect for only three days before being struck down by the court. In addition, OSHA (per CNBC), has asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit to dismiss all cases related to the mandate. This indicates that OSHA will not be pursuing further legal action related to the mandates at this time.

Now, employers who were preparing to implement the vaccine or test requirements are wondering what steps they can take to protect their workforce, even as President Joe Biden is urging firms to implement their own mandates. President Biden has been quoted as saying "… I call on business leaders to immediately join those who have already stepped up – including one third of Fortune 100 companies – and institute vaccination requirements to protect their workers, customers, and communities."