Federal Contractor COVID-19 Requirement Extended Until January 18, 2022

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The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published its emergency temporary standard (ETS) on COVID-19 vaccination and testing. It includes an extension for federal contractors subject to Executive Order 14042, Ensuring Adequate COVID Safety Protocols for Federal Contractors.

OSHA’s ETS, which applies to most private employers with 100 or more employees, required workplace vaccination and testing rules to be effective on January 4, 2022. To keep dates consistent, the effective date for EO 14042, which applies to federal contractors, was also extended to January 4, 2022. A subsequent update issued by the Safer Federal Workforce Task Force on November 10 extended the contractor deadline until January 18, 2022.

EO 14042 shall generally apply to new federal contracts or renewals or options, including those covered by the Service Contract Act or Davis-Bacon Act. EO 14042 requires employees to be vaccinated for COVID-19 or have a medical or religious exemption. Contractor sites not covered by EO 14042 would be subject to OSHA’s ETS. It is important to note that the OSHA rule allows for testing as an alternative to vaccination, whereas EO14042 does not.

More information regarding the application and timing of the federal contractor COVID-19 requirement can be found here, https://link.zixcentral.com/u/8a804b82/KH7euapL7BGkQDDUhnsoMg?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.saferfederalworkforce.gov%2Fcontractors%2F