WASHINGTON, Oct. 15 (Reuters) – The White House meets with influential industry trading groups, including the United States Chamber of Commerce and the Business Roundtable, as the administration struggles to issue a rule to put implementing President Joe Biden’s plan to demand that private sector workers be vaccinated against COVID-19.

The Office of Management & Budget (OMB) has set up these virtual meetings, some of which are scheduled for Friday and Monday, which will also include the Retail Industry Leaders Association and the National Association of Manufacturers, among others, according to public documents.

Other powerful groups such as the HR Policy Association, a forum for America’s largest employers, discussed the mandate with OMB officials on Thursday and stressed that companies want to be a partner in increasing immunization rates, according to Roger King, the union and senior manager of the group. employment advice.

The group expressed concerns that employers need clear rules on various issues, including alternatives to COVID-19 testing for vaccination, record keeping and confidentiality.

King said the HR Policy Association has also urged the administration to be flexible given concerns that mandatory vaccines could exacerbate labor shortages in some industries.

“It seems to move forward with warp speed,” King said.

Biden said Thursday that the warrant decision could be expected “soon.” The US Department of Labor Tuesday submitted in the White House the initial text of the decision.

The mandate will apply to businesses with 100 or more employees and will be implemented under a federal rule-making mechanism known as the Temporary Emergency Standard. This would affect around 80 million workers across the country.

Along with last month’s Biden order that requires all federal workers and contractors to be vaccinated, the orders cover 100 million people, or about two-thirds of the U.S. workforce.

Biden’s tenure announcement in September came to a breaking point as the country faced an increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths driven by the rapidly spreading Delta variant of the coronavirus due to a large part of the population refusing free vaccinations.

The coronavirus has killed more than 700,000 Americans.

Reporting by Nandita Bose and Tom Hals; Editing by Bill Berkrot

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