Employers and the law: Weighing mandatory COVID-19 vaccines

The availability of more vaccines raises some new questions for employers concerned about keeping employees and customers safe. (Photo: Viacheslav Lopatin / Shutterstock)

Since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has now issued emergency-use authorization (EUA) for three COVID-19 vaccines, there is an expectation that vaccines should be more readily available to a larger part of the general population. Many employers, brokers and insurers are watching this development with keen interest and in the hope that increased employee vaccinations will help return their businesses to some sort of normalcy.

While many individuals are eager to get vaccinated, recent surveys conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau reveal that a significant portion of the population reports that they may not get vaccinated. Many employers are contemplating whether to implement a policy mandating that their employees get a COVID-19 vaccination. Employers in New Jersey must understand there are significant risks to implementing such a policy which could, ultimately, lead to costly litigation.