Wednesday, September 22, 2021
12:00 p.m. – 1:15 p.m. ET
Vaccine Mandates: On September 9, 2021, President Biden announced that the Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is developing a rule requiring all employers with 100 or more employees to ensure their workforces are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or require unvaccinated workers to produce a negative COVID-19 test at least once a week. OSHA will issue an Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) enacting the requirement. The ETS will also implement a requirement that employers with more than 100 employees provide paid time off for workers to get vaccinated against COVID-19 or to recover from side effects they experience post-vaccination. President Biden also issued an Executive Order mandating that certain federal contractors require that employees working on or in connection with covered federal contracts be fully vaccinated. We will discuss what we know about the forthcoming ETS and implementation of the Executive Order, questions that remain to be answered about both new requirements, and steps employers can take now to prepare for the upcoming requirements.
COVID-19 Medical and Religious Accommodation Requests: As employers set dates for employees to return to in-person work, they are receiving an increase in reasonable accommodation requests from employees seeking accommodations based on medical conditions or religious beliefs. These requests include accommodations to continue working remotely, to be exempt from mandatory mask or vaccination requirements, and to have certain personal protective equipment or other COVID-19 transmission mitigation measures provided. We will discuss how employers can evaluate accommodation requests in the context of COVID-19 and upcoming plans to return to in-person work.
Restrictive Covenants: Over the course of the past year, several states and Washington, D.C. have enacted new laws restricting employers' use of noncompete agreements. The Biden Administration and Democrats in Congress have expressed a desire to take action at the federal level to limit the use of some types of noncompete agreements across the country. We will discuss the patchwork of restrictive covenant laws at the state level, along with the federal government's current stance on noncompete agreements and the potential implications on employers who enter into restrictive covenant agreements with members of their workforces.
Speakers
Partner,
Labor & Employment
Moderator
Partner,
Labor & Employment
Speaker
Partner,
Labor & Employment
Speaker
Partner,
Labor & Employment
Speaker
