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President Biden’s New Vaccine Mandate—What It Means for Employees

September 14, 2021/in Blog

On Thursday, September 9, 2021, President Biden issued an executive order with new vaccine mandates covering millions of employees. Here are several ways the new regulations impact employees. Who Is Covered? All federal employees; All federal contractors; All employees of employers who employee 100 or more employees; Nearly all employees who are healthcare workers at […]

How Do I Know If I Can Request FMLA Leave?

August 27, 2021/in Blog, Employment

Employees may request leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). To be eligible for FMLA leave, an employee must have worked for the employer for at least 12 months and have 1,250 hours of service in the previous 12 months. In addition, the employer must have at least 50 employees employed within 75 […]

President Biden’s New Vaccine Mandate—What It Means for Employees

September 14, 2021/in Blog

How Do I Know If I Can Request FMLA Leave?

August 27, 2021/in Blog, Employment

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President Biden’s New Vaccine Mandate—What It Means for Employees

September 14, 2021/in Blog

On Thursday, September 9, 2021, President Biden issued an executive order with new vaccine mandates covering millions of employees. Here are several ways the new regulations impact employees.

Who Is Covered?

All federal employees;
All federal contractors;
All employees of employers who employee 100 or more employees;
Nearly all employees who are healthcare workers at health facilities (only those that receive Medicare or Medicaid);
Many teachers (those working in Head Start and in schools run by the Department of Defense and the Bureau of Indian Affairs).

Some estimates are that this will impact more than 80 million workers in the U.S. and at least 1.4 million workers in Minnesota.

What Is Required?

Covered employees will be required to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, or else be tested at least once per week.
Is it not clear when exactly all the mandates all go into effect. However, Minnesota OSHA has 30 days from September 9 to issue rules that will go into effect for Minnesota workers.
Federal employees have 75 days to be vaccinated.

What If My Employer Does Not Require Vaccination?

Covered employers are required to follow the federal mandates as well as related state regulations, such as those imposed by Minnesota OSHA. Any employer that fails to do so violates the law.
Employees can and should report violations of workplace safety laws, including OSHA and Minnesota OSHA regulations. Employers cannot retaliate against employees who report violations of law, including COVID-19 safety regulations.

What If I Choose Not to Get Vaccinated or Be Tested?

This is a common—and hotly debated—question. While there are several exceptions, generally, employers are legally allowed to terminate employees who choose to not be vaccinated.
The exceptions to vaccine mandate include on the basis of disability and for those seeking religious exceptions. The EEOC is a great resource for the details of those exemptions. However, it is important to highlight that the standards for seeking a medical or religious exemption are high.

How Do I Know If I Can Request FMLA Leave?

August 27, 2021/in Blog, Employment

Employees may request leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

To be eligible for FMLA leave, an employee must have worked for the employer for at least 12 months and have 1,250 hours of service in the previous 12 months. In addition, the employer must have at least 50 employees employed within 75 miles of the location the employee works at.

An employee may request FMLA for one of the following reasons:

Incapacity due to pregnancy, prenatal medical care or childbirth;
To care for the employee’s child after birth, or placement for adoption or foster care;
To care for the employee’s spouse son, daughter or parent who has a serious health condition; or
If the employee has a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform their job duties.

After an employee confirms that they meet the eligibility requirements and that they have a reason that entitles such employee to receive FMLA benefits, but their employer has denied their FMLA request, an employee may file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor. An employee may also file a private lawsuit against their employer.

An employer cannot interfere with, restrain, or deny any employee of any right provided under FMLA. It is also unlawful for any employer to discriminate against an employee, penalize an employee or terminate an employee for submitting an FMLA request or for using their FMLA benefits.

Employees of an airline flight crew, military members and/or military families may be entitled to additional benefits and should consult with an employment attorney if they have more specific questions.

If you feel you have experienced discrimination or retaliation at work related to FMLA, our attorneys at Kitzer Rochel are here to help. Contact us today. We advocate on behalf of employees facing discrimination, retaliation, and whistleblower issues in the workplace.

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