Biden's employer mandate: Who will foot the bill for weekly Covid testing?

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

James Glunt’s law firm has received more than a few panicked calls since Thursday afternoon's announcement from the Biden administration that large employers will be required to mandate the Covid-19 vaccine or regularly test unvaccinated workers.

Glunt, a partner at Fisher Phillips LLP, said the mandate is yet another troubling development in what has been a thorny issue for employers to navigate.

While the rule, which applies to businesses with 100 or more employees, will shift blame for vaccine mandates from employers to the federal government, Glunt said Thursday’s announcement isn’t being welcomed with open arms by many employers.

“It’s just compounding what was already incredibly burdensome,” Glunt said.

https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2021/09/10/biden-testing-covid-mandate.html

In my opinion the employee who refuses to get vaccinated should pay for their own test. Employers have already stated the unvaccinated should pay higher health insurance premiums.

Not sure why the hand wringing. One would think companies would prefer healthy employees over a COVID outbreak among them.

[ColinC]

1. My company made clear that testing is covered by the employee but

Time getting vaccinated and recovering will be paid for by the company.

[sboatcar]

3. Makes sense to me, some employers might pay for the testing

but either way, the most cost effective thing is to just get your damn vaccine.

[lagomorph777]

4. I assume that will either be the Federal rule, or the way most companies will implement it.

Why should they pay for an employee's idiocy?

[lagomorph777]

2. Must be a RW lawyer. Multiple big companies are welcoming the mandate.

Sick employees are expensive and dangerous.

[Bleacher Creature]

5. Antivaxxers like to call their vaccination status a "personal choice."

Which means that the consequences of that decision also are personal choices. They should bear the bulk of the costs, unless they have a valid medical reason for not getting the shot.

[kirkuchiyo]

6. This, this, this, 1000% this nt

[WhiskeyGrinder]

7. I mean, it's a legit question.

[brush]

8. The unvaxxed employee should foot the bill for testing.

They're the ones making it necessary.

[Quakerfriend]

9. A year ago my hospital got 50 million in federal dollars to deal with covid

So, weekly testing was free to all employees.
This was before the vaccine was available.
At this time, I think anyone who wishes to remain unvaccinated should pay out of pocket, in order to increase the pressure on them to get the vaccine. I know this has been done in parts of Europe- ? France. I’m not sure who will pay here.

[The Magistrate]

10. I Agree, Sir

Vaccine is free, tests ought to cost the person who will not vaccinate.

[hardluck]

11. Was just talking about this issue with an in-house attorney

It will likely depend on the state. California Labor Code section 2802 provides that the employer has to reimburse business related expenses. The company can make the argument because the employee could get vaccinated, they could avoid the expense and as a consequence, it does not have to be reimbursed. But that runs many risks of potential class action lawsuits, so it will end up being a risk analysis that each individual company will have to make.

In many other states, it might be easier to pass on the cost to the employee but again, that will have to be an individual state assessment.

Hopefully the rule or the EEOC will provide some guidance on who should pay. As it stands now, there is pre-pandemic guidance from the EEOC that "If an employer requires an employee to go to a health care professional of the employer's choice, the employer must pay all costs associated with the visit(s).” This isn't directly applicable (employer’s choice of healthcare profession; is the company really requiring it as they can get the vaccine?), but it will give some employers pause.

Basically, right now we are just reading tea leaves.

Of course then there's the wage and hour issues of paying the non-exempt employee to take the test if it is not done on the premises.