21 Oct KARA joins peer associations in submitting comments to OMB on OSHA’s emergency temporary standard regarding COVID-19 vaccines
On October 19, 2021, Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association joined with the Kansas Grain and Feed Association and the Kansas Cooperative Council in providing comments to the United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) as the agency reviews an Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) on Vaccination Mandates and Testing by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), in response to Presidential Executive Order 12866.
As it has been announced, the proposed standard will require employers with 100 or more employees to ensure their workers are either vaccinated or are tested weekly for the COVID-19 virus. Companies found to be in violation of the standard will face fines of up to $14,000 per violation/per day.
The comments, available via the button below, identified numerous concerns with the proposed standard. Less intrusive alternatives to the proposed standard exist, and because the costs of complying with the standard outweigh the perceived benefit, the associations requested that OMB return the proposed standard to OSHA for reconsideration of a less intrusive approach.
If OMB approves of the ETS, the rule would only be effective for six months, after which, it would expire unless OSHA adopts a final rule through the normal rule-making process.