A petition has been filed in federal court asking for a review of a Covid 19 vaccination mandate earlier announced by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The Associated General Contractors, along with the American Road & Transportation Builders Association, as well as the Signatory Wall & Cleaning Contractors, have filed a petition in the U.S Court of Appeals for the Fourth District in Richmond to halt the OSHA action.
Noting the large number of construction workers who have expressed their opposition to getting a vaccine, vowing even to quit their jobs if forced to do so, the petition notes that such a mass worker exit could result in “damage to these companies and the critical effort to reconstruct the nation’s infrastructure would be great and irreparable.”
The petition further adds that the construction industry “is already facing a severe workforce shortage.”
Earlier this month, OSHA announced a requirement that all employers with 100 or more employees must ensure that their workers are fully vaccinated or subject to weekly tests for Covid-19 by January 4.
According to a White House press release, the OSHA action was expected to apply to at least 84 million employees.
OSHA has said that the mandate could save the lives of up to 6,500 workers in a six-month time span.
In a statement, Stephen Sandherr, chief executive officer of the Associated General Contractors, said that while his organization is supportive of construction workers getting vaccinations, the mandate will “put firms that employ 100 or more workers at grave risk of losing the workers they need to complete projects.”
Dave Bauer, president of the American Road & Transportation Builders Association, in a statement, said the OSHA move would “disproportionately impact the same construction industry employees and workers who proved they could safely deliver essential mobility improvements during the height of the Covid 19 pandemic.”
Anti-mandate lawsuits have now been filed in all twelve of the nation’s regional circuit courts, with the Cincinnati-based 6th Circuit Court of Appeals winning a lottery to hear the many challenges.
Legal experts say that whatever the 6th Circuit Court decides, the challenge is likely to end up in the Supreme Court.
By Garry Boulard
