On September 20, 2022, Mayor Eric Adams announced that New York City’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for private employers is ending. The City’s mandate for municipal employees, however, will remain in effect....more
On February 9, 2022, New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced that she would let the New York mask mandate lapse on its Thursday, February 10, 2022 expiration date. The Governor’s lifting of the statewide rule, which required...more
In the United States, the federal government has faced challenges in imposing vaccination mandates for large private employers, federal contractors, and certain health care employees. Because of that, choices around...more
2/8/2022
/ Complaint Procedures ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Covered Entities ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Policies ,
Exemptions ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
As we previously reported, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its guidance to shorten its isolation and quarantine requirements. Joining other states and localities, on January 4, 2022, the New York...more
As explained in greater detail by our colleague Stuart M. Gerson, the Supreme Court of the United States handed down two major, and quickly decided, rulings on January 13, 2022. After hearing oral arguments only six days...more
New York City’s private employer vaccine mandate became effective Monday. December 27, 2021 and, the City has updated its FAQs document and the Accommodations Guidance document (“Guidance”)....more
On December 17, 2021, a divided three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit lifted the nationwide injunction against the COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) issued by...more
12/21/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Health and Safety ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
On December 15, 2021, New York City followed up on the recently announced vaccine mandate for private employers by releasing further details, including several guidance documents and mandatory signage. The New York City...more
On December 6, 2021, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that New York City would be adding new rules and requirements for vaccination against COVID-19, including a “universal” vaccine mandate affecting all private employers—about...more
On Friday, November 12, 2021, a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued a strongly worded decision granting a motion to prevent the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) from...more
As we previously reported, effective November 5, 2021, the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) issued an Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) requiring employers with 100 or more employees to ensure that covered...more
On November 4, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released the long-awaited COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) for employers with 100 or more employees. At the...more
On November 4, 2021, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued an interim final rule (the “Rule”) requiring COVID-19 vaccination for staff at Medicare- and Medicaid-certified providers and suppliers. The...more
11/8/2021
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Hospitals ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Physicians ,
Vaccinations
On Monday, October 25, 2021, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued updates to its online technical assistance for employers, providing guidance for managing workplace issues arising from the ongoing...more
10/28/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Guidance Update ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Religious Accommodation ,
Religious Beliefs ,
Religious Exemption ,
Title VII ,
Undue Hardship ,
Vaccinations
On September 23, 2021, the New York State Department of Labor (“NYSDOL”) released an update to its general model airborne infectious disease exposure prevention plan (“model plan”) for employers’ use in complying with the NY...more
This is Part II of a three-part series called, “The Future of Work.” The Three sessions of the series address many of the issues attendant to returning to the workplace. Panelists explore:
- the implications of mandatory...more
8/17/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Policies ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Remote Working ,
Return-to-Work Agreements ,
Vaccinations ,
Vaccine Passports ,
Webinars ,
Workplace Safety
This is Part II of a three-part series called, “The Future of Work.” The Three sessions of the series address many of the issues attendant to returning to the workplace. Panelists explore:
- the implications of mandatory...more
8/16/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Policies ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Remote Working ,
Retailers ,
Return-to-Work Agreements ,
Vaccinations ,
Vaccine Passports ,
Webinars ,
Workplace Safety
Last week, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that the state disaster emergency he declared on March 7, 2020, due to COVID-19 would officially end after June 24, 2021. He then signed Executive Order No. 210, which...more
7/1/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Executive Orders ,
Governor Cuomo ,
Human Resources Professionals ,
New York ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Safety Precautions ,
State and Local Government ,
State of Emergency ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
On June 15, 2021, New York State celebrated reaching 70 percent of its adult population having received at least one vaccination dose. As a result, the State lifted most of its New York Forward industry-specific COVID-19...more
At long last, on June 8, 2021, the New York State Department of Health (“DOH”) released an update to Interim Guidance previously issued on May 15, 2021, containing current recommendations for employers that operate in an...more
6/11/2021
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Masks ,
New Guidance ,
New York ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Popular ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
On May 28, 2021, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) announced the release of updated guidance regarding the COVID-19 vaccine, providing welcome clarity around a number of vaccine-related issues for...more
In the wake of last week’s updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) easing social distancing and mask requirements for fully vaccinated people, on May 19, 2021, New York State issued its own...more
Welcome to #WorkforceWednesday. This week, we focus on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC's) new guidance for vaccinated individuals and what it means for accommodations.
Employers Navigate New CDC...more
5/19/2021
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Health and Safety ,
Masks ,
New Guidance ,
Public Accommodation ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Remote Working ,
Social Distancing ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
As we recently reported, as of March 12, 2021, all private employers in New York must provide their employees with up to four hours of paid leave to get each COVID-19 vaccination shot. The State has now released guidance on...more
New York employers no longer have to ponder if and how they should incentivize their employees to get vaccinated. Effective March 12, 2021, Senate Bill S2588A creates Labor Law Section 196-C, “Leave for COVID-19 Vaccination”...more