During July 2022, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) updated its COVID-19 workplace guidance. The new standards set forth important updates and clarifications regarding COVID-19 testing, vaccine mandates, and disability and religious accommodations in the workplace. Employers should familiarize themselves with the new guidance and, if necessary, update their existing COVID-19 policies.
Testing in the Workplace
The EEOC’s prior guidance stated that conducting mandatory COVID-19 testing in the workplace alwaysmet the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standard of being “job-related and consistent with business necessity.” The updated guidance now calls for a more nuanced assessment of community risk, stating that employers should perform individualized assessments to determine whether testing an employee is job related and consistent with business necessity.