Vax Up, Speak Up, or Stay Home: New York City Issues New Guidance on Vaccination Mandates for Private Workplaces and the Key to NYC Pass

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As previously reported, New York City’s vaccination mandate for private employers goes into effect on December 27, 2021. This measure, issued as an order from the New York City health commissioner in response to a public health emergency, mandates that all private employers require proof of vaccination from all workers entering the workplace. On December 15, 2021, New York City published its guidance on the mandate as well as Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). Separately, Mayor de Blasio issued a revised emergency order expanding the Key to NYC Pass for covered businesses to require employees and patrons, including children five years old and up, to be vaccinated to enter these indoor establishments. All this comes on the heels of New York State’s December 13, 2021 mask order, which requires that individuals wear masks in all indoor public places unless there is proof of vaccination as a condition of entry. This insight summarizes the takeaways for employers operating in NYC.

Private Employer Update

Step One: Understand the Mandate.

Businesses may not allow any unvaccinated workers to enter the workplace after December 27, 2021 for the duration of the mandate, unless a reasonable accommodation has been made. A “workplace” is “any location — including a vehicle — where you work in the presence of at least one other person.”

Importantly, the new mandate does not apply to workplaces already covered by other federal, state or local mandates, including the Key to NYC Pass, discussed separately below, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) mandate.1

Step Two: Verify & Record Vaccination Status of Employees.

Employers are expected to verify and document the vaccination status of all workers who regularly enter the workplace by December 27, 2021.2 There are three ways to do this:

  1. A worker’s record can be a copy of their proof of vaccination or a record of a reasonable accommodation with supporting documentation.
  2. Businesses can create their own paper or electronic record that includes the following information for each worker:
    1. Worker’s name
    2. Whether the worker is fully vaccinated
    3. For workers who submitted proof of the first dose of a two-dose vaccine, the date by which they must provide proof of a second dose (no later than 45 days after submitting proof of the first dose)
    4. Record of reasonable accommodation with supporting documentation
  3. Businesses may check each worker’s proof of vaccination before they enter the workplace each day. They must keep a record of each verification.

By Devjani Mishra, Mark Phillis, Lisa Griffith, Daniel Gomez-Sanchez, Emily Haigh, and Sanjay Nair via Littler

Read full article here.

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