Government Expected to Issue Vaccine Rules for Big Businesses In Days

The Labor Department’s rule that all employers with 100 or more employees will require its workers to get the coronavirus vaccines or be tested weekly is expected to be implemented within days, CNN reported.

The formal requirement would come after the Federal Register finalizes its review. President Joe Biden announced the rule in September.

The required review was completed on Monday, paving the way for the rule for private companies to take effect.

The companies will have to provide paid time off to get vaccinated, and those that do not comply face fines of up to nearly $14,000 for each violation. The businesses covered under the rule can go further and apply a blanket vaccine requirement on employees instead of offering a testing exemption.

“On November 1, the Office of Management and Budget completed its regulatory review of the emergency temporary standard. The Federal Register will publish the emergency temporary standard in the coming days,” a Labor Department spokesman said. “The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has been working expeditiously to develop an emergency temporary standard that covers employers with 100 or more employees, firm- or company-wide, and provides options for compliance.”

The spokesman added, “Covered employers must develop, implement, and enforce a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy, unless they adopt a policy requiring employees to choose either to get vaccinated or to undergo regular COVID-19 testing and wear a face covering at work. The ETS also requires employers to provide paid time to workers to get vaccinated and paid sick leave to recover from any side effects.”