Today, a federal court in Texas issued a nationwide stay of the President’s vaccination mandate for federal contractors. Under the vaccination mandate, federal employees could start being disciplined for being unvaccinated as soon as today. The timing, the judge found, put those employees at risk of “imminent harm,” and required his order to take effect immediately. So federal contractors who have already undertaken steps to suspend or otherwise discipline employees for failing to be vaccinated should immediately suspend those actions until further notice.

It is unclear when or whether the stay will be lifted as it has been in the past. It is also possible that this decision finds its way to the Supreme Court, as the previous mandates for large employers and healthcare operations did. We will continue to keep employers updated any additional developments.

Jared Speier will be hosting an executive briefing on January 25th at 12 pm to discuss developments in vaccination mandates and how to implement your COVID-19 protocols in the workplace. You can register by clicking here.