NORFOLK, Va. — Millions of more Americans are officially required to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
President Joe Biden signed executive orders covering about 100 million Americans, including requiring federal government employees and contractors to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
"We're in the tough stretch," said Biden on Thursday.
Jennifer Boykin, president of Newport News Shipbuilding and executive vice president of parent company, Huntington Ingalls Industries, one of the largest employers and Navy contractors in Hampton Roads, posted a message on Facebook for company workers.
“We recognize this news may be stressful and concerning to many of you," Boykin wrote. “We are evaluating the impact this will have on our operations.”
Friday, a company spokesperson said in all, Huntington Ingalls Industries employs about 44,000 people operating both domestically and internationally.
Boykin's letter, posted on Thursday, also said the company was already working on a vaccination mandate plan in anticipation of the executive order.
By Friday, the company had not yet decided on next steps. However, Boykin said it will prioritize the safety and health of employees and supporting government customers.
The company is also planning in-yard vaccination events through September, October and into November to make it easier for our employees to get the vaccine, according to a spokesperson. It's part of Huntington's ongoing COVID-19 response.
It’s a large task private companies also face now.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is making a rule requiring all employers with 100 or more workers to make sure their staff is fully vaccinated or take weekly tests before work.
An OSHA representative said Friday the agency expects the rule to impact more than 80 million people in the private sector.
OSHA will also require companies with more than 100 employees to give paid time off to get vaccinated or to recover, if workers get sick after their shots.
OSHA is doing this by issuing what is called an Emergency Temporary Standard. Those can be put in place when the agency determines workers are in "grave danger" and that emergency action is needed to protect them.
But Professor Brad Jacob, of Regent University School of Law, said this is new territory for the agency.
"OSHA normally tells you how to behave in the workplace, how to maintain the work environment to make things safe," said Jacob. "To start telling people, 'You don’t get your job unless you’ve received a certain medical treatment,' it’s different. But that doesn’t mean it’s invalid."
The validity of an ETS can be challenged in the U.S. Court of Appeals, and Jacob said companies can ask a judge for an injunction.
"It’s going to be litigation, and people are going to challenge this in court," he said.
But Jacob thinks it all depends on how judges weigh the Biden's argument that these actions are needed to protect communities from the pandemic.
“Both sides have real passionate cases that they can argue," he said.