Team,
As you know we are facing a multitude of Government mandates regarding COVID 19 vaccinations. Please understand that this is a very dynamic situation and we expect it to continue to evolve. What we currently know and or expect is outlined below:
- Washington state mandate (Effective October 18th, 2021):
- Occupied educational facilities and healthcare settings (including assisted living facilities) are required to mandate vaccination or a qualifying exemption. This mandate will flow to much of our work on these facilities.
- Federal contractor mandate:
- This mandate will apply to Absher when we have what is referred to as a “covered contract” which Absher doesn’t currently have. However, we are preparing for the possibility that we could have a covered contract that would trigger the requirement as soon as December 8th, 2021.
- Federal 100+ Employee mandate:
- OSHA is expected to release a mandate that employers with more than 100 employees require all employees to be either vaccinated or provide proof of a negative COVID test weekly. It has been announced that this mandate will be forthcoming but no additional information on the actual language, timing or required implementation is available yet.
Absher is a strong proponent of the vaccination and believes it is the best defense for all to stay safe, healthy and for us to ensure business continuity. This said we do not believe it is our role to force or demand vaccinations upon our team members. Unfortunately it is becoming increasingly likely that the government mandates will ultimately force us to change our position. In most cases the mandates allow for exemptions for either religious or medical reasons. Once we know how many qualifying exemptions we have then we will assess how to best accommodate people who have an exemption. Our options will depend on how exemptions we have and the job role, work location, etc. of the person.
Attached are documents outlining our vaccine exemption process and the forms to apply for a medical or religious exemption. We ask anyone that intends to apply for an exemption to do so as early as possible.
For our operational teams, please distribute this email and the attached process document to our craft labor team members and anyone that does not have access to an Absher email account.
We will continue to communicate as information becomes available.
Thanks,
Jeff Richards