Effective Date
The ETS is in effect as of publication in the Federal Register (11/5/21) and employers have 30 days— January 4, 2022– to comply with all requirements other than who have not completed their primary vaccination dose. Within 60 days, employers must be in compliance with testing requirements for employees who have not received all doses required for a primary vaccination.
To be clear, all requirements except the testing for employees who are not fully vaccinated or who are opting for testing must be implemented by January 4, 2022. The testing requirement must be implemented 30 days after that (60 days after publication in the Federal Register on 11/5/21). You may find the chart provided in Section 12.A. of the FAQ to be helpful. I’ve also pasted it below for your convenience.
The effective date for the ETS is November 5, 2021, which is the date the ETS was published in the Federal Register. Although the ETS becomes effective immediately, employers are not required to comply with the requirements of the ETS until the compliance dates, as follows:
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Table of effective dates |
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Requirement |
30 days after publication |
60 days after publication |
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Establish policy on vaccination (paragraph (d)) |
X |
|
|
Determine vaccination status of each employee, obtain acceptable proof of vaccination, maintain records and roster of vaccination status (paragraph (e)) |
X |
|
|
Provide support for employee vaccination (paragraph (f)) |
X |
|
|
Ensure employees who are not fully vaccinated are tested for COVID-19 at least weekly (if in the workplace at least once a week) or within 7 days before returning to work (if away from the workplace for a week or longer) (paragraph (g)) |
X |
|
|
Require employees to promptly provide notice of positive COVID-19 test or COVID-19 diagnosis (paragraph (h)) |
X |
|
|
Remove any employee who received positive COVID-19 test or COVID-19 diagnosis (paragraph (h)) |
X |
|
|
Ensure employees who are not fully vaccinated wear face coverings when indoors or when occupying a vehicle with another person for work purposes (paragraph (i)) |
X |
|
|
Provide each employee information about the ETS; workplace policies and procedures; vaccination efficacy, safety and benefits; protections against retaliation and discrimination; and laws that provide for criminal penalties for knowingly supplying false documentation (paragraph (j)) |
X |
|
|
Report work-related COVID-19 fatalities to OSHA within 8 hours and work-related COVID-19 in-patient hospitalizations within 24 hours (paragraph (k)) |
X |
|
|
Make certain records available (paragraph (l)) |
X |
Lauren B. Kallins, Esq.
Director of Government Relations
