Earlier today, New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced that the NYC private employer vaccine mandate will be lifted and become optional on November 1, 2022.
Read MoreSince September 2021, COVID-19 has been designated as a highly contagious airborne infectious disease that presents a serious risk of harm to the public health pursuant to the New York State HERO Act. This designation finally expired on March 17, 2022. As such, employers are no longer required to implement and effectuate their workplace safety plans and related measures, such as workplace screening and distancing protocols.
Read MoreOver the weekend, the New York State Commissioner of Health (the “Commissioner”) extended the designation of COVID-19 as a highly contagious communicable disease under the HERO Act until February 15, 2022. The Commissioner will again review the level of transmission of COVID-19 in New York State on approximately February 15th and determine whether to continue this designation.
Read MoreOn January 13, the Supreme Court issued two opinions related to national vaccination mandates: staying enforcement of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) and staying the preliminary injunctions which were issued on the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) rule requiring vaccination for employees of facilities who receive Medicare and Medicaid funding. While not the final word on these requirements, these rulings demonstrate the likely outcome of these legal challenges. The result of these rulings is that many employers will be left subject to myriad state and local requirements related to vaccination, testing, and masking.
Read MoreAs employers may recall, Section 2 of New York State’s HERO Act requires employers to permit employees to form a joint labor-management workplace safety committee. These obligations took effect on November 1, 2021. On December 22, 2021, the DOL issued proposed regulations for Section 2.
Read MoreAs employers may recall, on December 6, 2020, Mayor De Blasio announced a mandatory vaccination order for all New York City employers and on December 15, 2021 the text of that order, and the related guidance, was issued by the City. On December 23, 2021, NYC revised its FAQS for Covered Entities and Guidance on Accommodations for Workers related to this order. Significantly, these FAQS confirm that even employers who are covered by the OSHA Emergency Temporary Standard for large private employers must comply with this New York City order, meaning that their workers must be vaccinated to gain entrance to a workplace if they do not have a reasonable accommodation and there is no alternative testing option.
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