Business Group Sues Biden Over Vaccine Mandates

‘The Administration’s mandate will exacerbate the worst labor shortage in recorded history’

Karl Salzmann • November 4, 2021 3:10 pm

A small-business advocacy group is suing the Biden administration over the president’s vaccine mandate.

The Job Creators Network on Thursday filed a lawsuit to block the mandate, which the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is set to declare on Friday. Any businesses that have more than 100 employees will have to pay thousands of dollars in fines unless they force all of their employees to either be vaccinated or tested weekly by Jan. 4.

The network represents several small businesses, many of which are family-owned. The group’s president, Alfredo Ortiz, said many small businesses cannot afford to enforce the mandate.

“The Administration’s mandate will exacerbate the worst labor shortage in recorded history by requiring small business owners to terminate some employees … while also shrinking the pool of job applicants,” Ortiz said. “The mandate also adds a new expense for businesses in the form of costs associated with employee vaccination status tracking and required paid time off for employee vaccination.”

Administration officials told Fox News that fines could reach as much as $14,000 per violation. OSHA estimates that 84 million Americans will be affected by its order. Employees “working remotely … or exclusively outside” are not exempt, according to the mandate.

The Job Creators Network is not the only group to file suit against the order. After President Joe Biden in September announced the mandate, saying “our patience is wearing thin” with unvaccinated Americans, multiple red-state attorneys general and the Republican National Committee filed lawsuits against the administration.

Nearly 59 percent of voters oppose the mandate, a Trafalgar Group poll found in September. The pollster also found that 65 percent of voters say employees should not lose their jobs for refusing the vaccine.