New Federal Guidance for Requiring COVID Vaccinations
With some exceptions, you may legally require your employees to get a COVID-19 vaccination as long as the disease is a threat to the workplace.
As vaccines are being developed and made available, many employers are wondering whether they can protect their employees and customers by requiring all employees be vaccinated. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency in charge of enforcing laws prohibiting discrimination in the workplace, issued guidance in December 2020 for employers who want to require employees to get vaccinated before entering the workplace.
U.S. law allows private employers to define general working conditions, including the adoption of health and safety practices.
Setting up practices and procedures includes requiring employees to get vaccinated against diseases that could compromise the health and safety of everyone in the workplace. Despite new EEOC guidance, employers must consider the impact of equal employment opportunity (EEO) laws, including the American Disabilities Act (ADA); Rehabilitation Act; Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA); and Title VII, including the Pregnancy Discrimination Act.
Another option for employers who mandate the COVID-19 vaccine is to have employees get vaccinated at a pharmacy, health care provider or other third party not contracted by the employer. The pre-vaccination screening would not be a disability-related inquiry. Employers who are not in high-risk industries, such as health care, can make vaccinations voluntary.
Voluntary vaccination programs do not trigger the ADA’s requirements to demonstrate that the pre-vaccination screenings are “job-related and consistent with business necessity”, nor do they require the employer to assess accommodations and show that not getting a vaccination would be a threat to the business.