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U.S. businesses are giving President Biden’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate a mixed reception for businesses with 100 or more employees, with many large companies or their business groups welcoming the directive even as small businesses bristle.
Some companies say the order imposes another burden that could intensify historic worker shortages and supply chain bottlenecks.
Meanwhile, details such as how exactly the plan will be implemented and who bears the costs will likely remain unclear until the Occupational Safety and Health Administration issues a “temporary emergency standard” that will implement. implement the requirement, according to legal experts.
The order is expected to cover around 80 million private sector workers and the vast majority of around 4 million federal workers.
On Thursday, Biden ordered companies with 100 or more employees to take overand workers are vaccinated or tested at least once a week for COVID-19. A separate executive order will require vaccination of federal executive and contractor workers.
Many large companies are taking the mandate in stride because they were either already putting in place their own vaccination policies or strongly considering doing so, says Kathryn Bakich, manager of healthcare compliance practices at Segal, a benefits consulting firm. social.
A handful of corporate giants such as United Airlines, McDonald’s and Walt Disney have imposed vaccination warrants on some or all of their employees in the spring. In turn, other large and medium-sized companies have followed similar policies this summer or have decided to give them serious consideration.
“I don’t think there is anyone who doesn’t talk about it,” says Bakich, whose clients are usually large companies.
“The business roundtable applauds the continued vigilance of the Biden administration in the fight against COVID,” the group, which represents the nation’s top businesses, said in a statement. “Over the past few weeks, many companies have decided to implement a vaccination mandate for some or all of their employees, a move that we applaud. “
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Offer employers “some coverage”
Many companies that were reluctant to impose a vaccine requirement that might be unpopular with some staff are likely to welcome Biden’s order, said Karla Grossenbacher, head of labor and employment practices for Seyfarth Shaw in Washington. DC
“This will provide employers with some coverage,” she says.
Still, large companies with hundreds or thousands of employees “will have an easier time complying because they have large human resources departments to ensure that employees are vaccinated or tested every week,” says James Sullivan, co-chair of the law firm Cozen O’Connor. security practice group.
“Many small employers are not equipped” to cope with this logistics, he adds, and will have to bear the expense of paid leave for employees to get vaccinated or recover from the vaccine, as required. Biden’s order.
“Small businesses face daily challenges related to the demands of the pandemic, the search for skilled workers, soaring inflation and supply chain disruptions,” said Kevin Kuhlman, vice president of relations with the federal government for the National Federation of Independent Businesses. “Additional warrants, enforcement and sanctions will further threaten the fragile small business recovery.”
“I will lose 30% of my workforce”
Mehtab Bhogal, co-CEO of Forever Floral, which sells handmade artificial flower bouquets online, says he doesn’t have the HR staff to take care of vaccination or testing of his 130 employees.
“It will take time and time is money,” he says, estimating that the tasks will take between 150 and 200 hours for his COO and production manager.
Bhogal says he’s already struggling to attract and retain employees due to worker shortages, and the tenure will escalate those tensions. He notes that the company is based in Ogden, Utah, a conservative region that tends to view federal mandates with suspicion.
“I guess I’ll lose 30% of my workforce,” he says. He says he also can’t absorb the cost of the weekly testing and would likely only hire vaccine candidates.
“It feels like (the government) is forcing employers to do their dirty work to avoid liability,” Bhogal adds. “It creates a lot of unnecessary headaches for us. “
But MediCopy, a Nashville-based medical records company with around 200 employees nationwide, created its own policy reflecting Biden’s plan two weeks ago, CEO Elliott Noble-Holt said.
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“We are a health service provider and it is important for us to lead by example,” he says. “Watching the president speak on mandates made my team proud. This confirmed that we put humanity first.
Impact on labor shortages
The order could have a mixed effect on the country’s labor shortages.
If a company establishes its own vaccination requirement, employees who do not want to be vaccinated could move to a competitor. A federal mandate could limit such turnover because it is imposed on all companies with at least 100 employees.
“The administration’s approach will help level the playing field and ease the pressure on employers who fear moving too fast or too soon in this important area,” said Devjani Mishra, COVID task force leader. -19 from Littler Mendelson.
On the flip side, Biden’s plan could make the revenue problem worse if it prompts employees of companies with more than 100 workers to move to smaller companies, Grossenbacher said.
Meanwhile, further details of how the warrant will be carried out are unclear, Grossenbacher says.
Will companies have to report vaccine and test results to OSHA or just track them and possibly be audited?
Who will bear the cost of the tests – companies or employees?
If a company doesn’t make sure its employees are vaccinated or tested, will their legal liability be greater if a worker gets stung?
It could, according to Grossenbacher and Sullivan, although OSHA’s order will likely spell out all of these issues more clearly.
“There are a lot of unanswered questions,” says Grossenbacher.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biden Vaccine Mandate: US Companies Have Mixed Reactions to the Order
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