Biden: DOL to Require Employers With 100 or More Employees to Mandate Vaccinations or Test Weekly

As part of his COVID-19 Action Plan, “Path out of the Pandemic”, President Biden says he is implementing a strategy to combat COVID-19 and vaccinate the unvaccinated in the workforce.

What was once a suggestion is becoming a requirement. According to whitehouse.gov, “The President’s plan will reduce the number of unvaccinated Americans by using regulatory powers and other actions to substantially increase the number of Americans covered by vaccination requirements—these requirements will become dominant in the workplace. “

All employers with 100 or more employees will be required to mandate vaccines or test weekly for COVID-19:

The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is developing a rule that will require all employers with 100 or more employees to ensure their workforce is fully vaccinated or require any workers who remain unvaccinated to produce a negative test result on at least a weekly basis before coming to work. OSHA will issue an Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) to implement this requirement. This requirement will impact over 80 million workers in private sector businesses with 100+ employees.

“So, tonight, I’m announcing that the Department of Labor is developing an emergency rule to require all employers with 100 or more employees, that together employ over 80 million workers, to ensure their workforces are fully vaccinated or show a negative test at least once a week.”

“The bottom line: We’re going to protect vaccinated workers from unvaccinated co-workers.  We’re going to reduce the spread of COVID-19 by increasing the share of the workforce that is vaccinated in businesses all across America.”

Employers will also be required by OSHA to give employees paid time off to get vaccinated:

To continue efforts to ensure that no worker loses a dollar of pay because they get vaccinated, OSHA is developing a rule that will require employers with more than 100 employees to provide paid time off for the time it takes for workers to get vaccinated or to recover if they are under the weather post-vaccination. This requirement will be implemented through the ETS.

“And tonight, I’m removing one of the last remaining obstacles that make it difficult for you to get vaccinated.

The Department of Labor will require employers with 100 or more workers to give those workers paid time off to get vaccinated.  No one should lose pay in order to get vaccinated or take a loved one to get vaccinated.”

Read more on the plan HERE. Read Remarks by PresidentBiden on Fighting the COVID-⁠19Pandemic HERE or watch below.

Watch Boost COVID-19 Vaccinations and Press Secretary Jen Psaki explains President Biden’s new COVID-19 Action Plan below.