Employers Can Reportedly Require Workers to Get COVID-19 Vaccine

Recently, the FDA supported the endorsement of Pfizer and Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccines. Now, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has updated guidance on pandemic procedures, noting that companies now have the right to require employees to get a COVID-19 vaccine when it is available to them.

The EEOC issued a statement on the procedure update this past Wednesday, saying, “The ADA [Americans with Disabilities Act] allows an employer to have a qualification standard that includes 'a requirement that an individual shall not pose a direct threat to the health or safety of individuals in the workplace.’”

Currently, the ADA limits employers having the ability to require a medical exam. However, the guidance notes now say that vaccination does not count as a medical exam. This means the vaccine requirement wouldn’t be an ADA violation. Stay tuned for more details.

source: COMPLEX