Amy Quoted by SHRM: Antibody Testing And The Workplace

“[T]he priority should be to make sure that employers have a safe workplace.” This is always a priority, and in light of the covid pandemic, our partner Amy Epstein Gluck (a/k/a the Notorious AEG), restated this in a new SHRM article about antibody tests and the workplace implications.

Amy cited what the medical experts are now conceding, that “We do not know what it means yet to have COVID-19 antibodies. We do not know it means [someone] won’t get it again,” and that antibody tests frequently result in false positives.

However, even in light of all of the uncertainties, there are a number of things employers must know and do. The article cites to recent EEOC and CDC guidelines, and discusses relevant legal issues, for example “that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits mandatory antibody testing before allowing employees to return to the worksite.”

Amy noted, however, that:

“Some managers don’t realize that if someone is showing signs of COVID-19, they can ask individuals to have their temperature taken in a confidential manner or ask the workers to get tested for COVID-19.” However, “[m]ake sure COVID-19 testing is implemented consistently.”

Read this article and the EEOC and CDC guidelines as they are published, or save yourself time by reading Amy’s blog posts and other publications in which she is quoted.