The Vote, However, Is Largely Symbolic
All 34 lawsuits—including ÃÛ½ÛÖ±²¥â€™s, supported by the Construction Advocacy Fund—challenging OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) on COVID-19 are now consolidated in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. The federal government has filed a motion in that court to dissolve the current stay of any enforcement of that standard, including its vaccination/testing mandate, and on December 10, the parties will complete their briefing of that motion. Since November 6, that stay has precluded OSHA from implementing or enforcing the ETS, including requirements that OSHA had scheduled to take effect on December 6. ÃÛ½ÛÖ±²¥ of America expects the court to grant or deny the government’s motion within a matter of days. While significant, the court’s decision will not end the litigation. Its decision on the stay will not be a final decision on the merits of the ETS. That will come later.
That is enforceable under State Construction Laws
Covered Contractors Must Use to Certify Annually and Submit During Evaluations
Total construction spending edged higher in October, as gains in public and private project types outmatched decreases in single- and multifamily residential outlays, according to a new analysis of federal construction spending data the Associated General Contractors of America released today. Officials noted that public sector investments would likely rise in the near future because of the recently-passed infrastructure bill, but cautioned that labor shortages and supply chain problems were posing significant challenges for the industry.
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has just issued an emergency temporary standard (ETS) to require employers to ensure their workers are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or tested on at least a weekly basis. The legal and contractual implications will wreak havoc on existing and prospective construction contracts. The OSHA ETS applies to employers with 100 or more employees to either be vaccinated or test regularly and it will apply to both private and public construction contracts. Provisions in ConsensusDocs standard contract documents provide advantages in both substance and stylistic clarity as compared to other standard contract documents, including those by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), such as the AIA A201 Terms and General Conditions document.
BY BRIAN PERLBERG, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF CONSENSUSDOCS AND ÃÛ½ÛÖ±²¥â€™S SENIOR COUNSEL FOR CONSTRUCTION LAW