The United States Supreme Court says President Biden's plan that would mandate large private companies to have vaccine requirements in place for their employees is unconstitutional. It made its ruling January 13, leaving the decision up to each company.

"It means that there is no longer a consequence, a sanction coming if you don't have in place, a mandatory vaccine policy," Shannon Pierce, Director at Fennemore Craig said. 

The high court's decision does allow the federal mandate to remain in place for private hospitals that accept federal funding.

Companies that decide to implement their own vaccine requirements have to allow exceptions for religion and disabilities. Large companies like Starbucks have already decided against a vaccine requirement. Others like Carhartt are keeping their mandates in place.

"A lot of employers can still choose, if they want, to say that that is one of the ways that we're going to keep our workplace safe is to require vaccines," Pierce said.

Nevada has many businesses that would have been affected by the federal mandate. The largest industry in the state is hospitality. The ruling means it is up to hotels and casinos to decide how to handle vaccinations within their companies. Many have worked with the state to adopt the best practices to help keep their doors open. Especially, after the nonessential business shutdown in 2020.

"The one thing that we've seen over the last few months is that the casinos have very much wanted to partner with Governor Sisolak in making sure they can do everything they can to keep the public safe because their business depends on it," Pierce said. "I think that they realized that anything they can do to make people feel safe, they want to do."

Companies have a lot to consider including what type of business they have, number of employees and other unique factors. Pierce says it is a good idea for them to get legal counsel before making a decision. The labor market is tight, and the Omicron surge is affecting some businesses' ability to keep their doors open. On the other hand, a vaccine mandate could cause some employees to quit. Their goal is to stay open.

"That requires keeping your workforce safe and letting your customers know that you're keeping your workforce safe but can those protections go so far that you actually rob yourself of the employees you need to open the doors? Perhaps," Pierce said.

The ruling means the Occupational Health and Safety Administration does not have the authority to enforce the federal mandate. The question is how Nevada OSHA will handle it.

"Nevada OSHA tends to follow what federal OSHA does, so I think that we're going to see the same results there," Pierce said. "The bigger question there though is 'Are we going to see congress act?'"

The court did say that it would be up to Congress to pass a law that could replace the OSHA mandate. Vice President Kamala Harris gives the Democrats a one-vote advantage over the Republicans if it it decides to implement the policy.

"If they're following the Supreme Court's lead, I think they're going to do it a different way," Pierce said. "They're going to attack it, industry by industry, rather than hit employers of a certain size."

OSHA is still obligated to protect workers from recognized hazards. The question many have is how they go about that during the COVID-19 era.