Contact: Amanda H. Beck
(202) 789-8604
abeck@chro.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 4, 2021
WASHINGTON, D.C. – HR Policy Association, representing chief human resource officers of more than 390 of the largest employers in the United States, released the following statement by President and CEO Timothy J. Bartl after the Occupational Safety and Health Administration released the text of the Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) mandating vaccination or testing for employers with more than 100 employees:
HR Policy Association supports the Biden administration’s goal of broad employee protection through expanded COVID vaccination and testing, and has been working diligently with the administration to inform its process in developing and issuing this Emergency Temporary Standard.
While we are still digesting the details of the rule, initially we are encouraged by the compliance flexibility given to employers in the standard. We especially appreciate that the administration provided a longer compliance window and made the compliance dates consistent between the OSHA ETS and the federal contractor vaccine mandates. We understand that the issuance of the standard is just the first step in the process, and look forward to working with the administration and the Department of Labor to address the implementation issues employers will face in the weeks ahead.
Going forward, we urge the White House and the Department of Labor to continue to consider the staffing and talent issues that private employers will encounter as they begin to implement the federal vaccine mandate during this critical economic recovery period.
HR Policy Association member companies collectively employ more than 11 million Americans, over nine percent of the U.S. workforce, most of which will be covered by the ETS vaccine mandate.
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HR Policy Association is the lead organization representing chief human resource officers of major employers. The Association consists of more than 390 of the largest corporations doing business in the United States and globally, and these employers are represented in the organization by their most senior human resource executive. Collectively, their companies employ more than 11 million employees in the United States, over nine percent of the private sector workforce, and 20 million employees worldwide. They have a combined market capitalization of more than $8 trillion. These senior corporate officers participate in the Association because of their commitment to improving the direction of human resource policy. Their objective is to use the combined power of the membership to act as a positive influence to better public policy, the HR marketplace, and the human resource profession. For more information visit chro.org.
