The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released a Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) that will require workplaces with 100 or more employees to ensure staff is fully vaccinated by Jan 4, 2022, or tested for COVID-19 on a weekly basis. The Auto Care Association said this new requirement will impact a number of its member companies.
Employers will be required to provide paid leave for their employees to get vaccinated and must ensure all unvaccinated employees wear a face mask in the workplace. However, employers are not required to pay for COVID-19 testing. The Auto Care Association says the rule will preempt any inconsistent state or local laws, including laws that ban or limit an employer’s authority to require vaccination, mask or testing.
Industry Supply Chain Concerns
The Tire Industry Association recently wrote a letter to President Biden listing five ways the administration could help solve the challenges affecting the nation’s supply chain. No. 3 of the letter asks for flexibility in vaccine mandates.
“Our industries are committed partners in the fight against COVID-19, and we unequivocally support the use of vaccines to fight its spread. However, we are concerned a mandate will cripple an already strained supply chain. We estimate companies covered by the mandate could lose 37% of drivers at a time when the nation is already short 80,000 truck drivers. We ask for flexibility for transportation and supply chain essential workers, particularly truck drivers who spend most of their time in their trucks and have minimal contact with colleagues and customers,” the letter states.
