News & Events

By: Julie Pace, David Selden, and Heidi Nunn-Gilman

On Thursday, January 13, 2022, the Supreme Court stayed the OSHA COVID-19 vaccination or testing mandate for employers with 100 or more employees.  This relieves large employers of the legal obligation to require employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 or provide weekly negative COVID-19 testing.  Employers, however, should still ensure that they are taking appropriate steps to prevent or limit the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace.

The Supreme Court majority in NFIB v. OSHA focused on the fact that “OSHA is tasked with ensuring occupational safety” and enforcing standards “reasonably necessary or appropriate to provide safe or healthful employment.”  The Court concluded that the vaccination or testing mandate exceeded OSHA’s authority to set standards for workplace safety, and amounted to a broad public safety measure. 

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By: Heidi Nunn-Gilman

Arizona’s minimum wage was increased by $0.65/hour to $12.80/hour effective January 1, 2022.  This is an increase of approximately 5.3% from the $12.15/hour minimum wage in 2021, based on the rise in the Consumer Price Index from August 2020 to August 2021.

The new minimum rate for tipped employees was increased to $9.80 per hour.

The 2022 Minimum Wage Poster can be found at the Arizona Industrial Commission website here. https://www.azica.gov/labor-minimum-wage-main-page

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By: Julie Pace, David Selden, and Heidi Nunn-Gilman.

On December 17, 2021, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals lifted the stay on the OSHA Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”) requiring that companies with 100 or more employees require either employees be vaccinated against COVID-19 or be tested weekly for COVID-19.

The states who filed lawsuits to oppose the ETS have filed an emergency appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court, which has discretion whether to hear it.

I. Deadlines for Compliance with OSHA’S ETS.

OSHA has stated that it is exercising its enforcement discretion and will not issue citations for noncompliance with any aspects of the COVID-19 ETS before January 10, 2022, and will not enforce the testing requirements before February 9, 2022, in order to provide employers with time to come into compliance, provided that the company is exercising reasonable, good-faith efforts to come into compliance with the ETS.

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By Julie Pace, David Selden, & Heidi Nunn-Gilman

What are companies required to do regardless of the Fifth Circuit’s stay of the ETS?

Make sure COVID fatigue has not made your company lax regarding items that companies are supposed to have implemented and maintained, regardless of the newly proposed COVID‑19 vaccination standards. This legal alert outlines the federal contractor vaccination requirements, the new ETS standards for private employers that are currently on hold, how to prepare if it is implemented, and outlines what companies should be doing regardless of the OSHA Emergency Temporary Standards (“ETS”). 

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On November 15th,  Grady Gammage moderated a discussion among Arizona leaders for the Morrison Institute of Public Policy 2021 State of the State event.

To watch the full recording of this panel featuring Samuel Thumma, Maria Cristina Fuentes, Corey Woods, Michael White, and Robin Reed, click here or watch below!

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