In a recent release, Labor Secretary Marty Walsh defended OSHA’s emergency standard mandating that companies with more than 100 employees require most workers to either be fully vaccinated or to wear masks at work and be tested weekly. The Supreme Court ruled January 13 that OSHA cannot enforce its COVID standard until a lower court fully hears claims by business organizations and states that the agency exceeded its authority when it issued the rule and that implementation will cause many workers to quit. Walsh promised that regardless of the ultimate outcome of the court proceedings, “OSHA will do everything in its existing authority to hold businesses accountable for protecting workers, including under the COVID-19 National Emphasis Program and General Duty Clause.”
