AGC’s lawsuit against the federal vaccine mandate is fast-tracked, as a nationwide halt to the mandate’s implementation is limited by another court.
AGC of America’s Construction Advocacy Fund-backed lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas challenging the federal contractor vaccine mandate is moving forward. It had been on hold since December 2021 pending a decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit. That decision from the 11th Circuit came on August 26, when that court limited the scope of a nationwide injunction halting implementation of the mandate to only the plaintiffs in that particular case.
Based on that decision, AGC is renewing its longstanding request for a preliminary injunction that would shield all AGC members—if not all federal contractors—from enforcement of the Administration’s broad mandate that federal contractors require COVID-19 vaccinations. Per the court’s request, AGC will file a status update on Friday, September 2 on its motion for a preliminary injunction. The court could decide on AGC’s request as early as next week.
On August 31, Safer Federal Workforce Taskforce issued guidance suggesting agencies to pause the mandate’s implementation for consistency. However, agencies can go forward with these requirements. None have done so to date.
Although AGC of America continues to fight back against the federal contractor vaccine mandate, the association’s broader efforts to support the construction industry’s voluntary encouragement for the use of COVID-19 vaccines remain. AGC of America has put forth a host of construction industry-specific resources on its COVID-19 Vaccine Toolkit webpage. The resources include a series of Construction Advocacy Fund-financed public service ads AGC of America created specifically targeting construction workers.
For more information, contact jordan.howard@agc.org or (703) 837-5368.