(WASHINGTON) – The National Retail Federation issued the following statement from President and CEO Matthew Shay regarding the organization’s involvement in a multi-trade association lawsuit against the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for its COVID-19 employer-based vaccination and testing Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS).
“We are deeply concerned about the timing for implementing the OSHA vaccine mandate during the most important season of the year for retailers and customers. Our members are already facing workforce shortages and supply chain disruptions, in addition to the legal and practical challenges of implementing this ETS during the holiday season.
“The December 6 deadline to provide proof of employee vaccination status and the January 4 deadline for testing unvaccinated employees are both unworkable and virtually impossible. We have consistently and repeatedly communicated our concerns about the practical challenges of meeting those arbitrary targets. However, it appears that our only remaining course of action is to petition for judicial relief.”
NRF sent an initial letter to President Biden when OSHA published the ETS on November 5 and sent an expanded letter to the Department of Labor and President Biden on November 9 requesting an extension on the implementation of the mandate.
NRF filed suit on November 9 in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and was joined by the American Trucking Associations, FMI – The Food Industry Association, the International Warehouse Logistics Association, the Association for Convenience & Fuel Retailing, the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors and the National Federation of Independent Business.
