Retail, truckers, businesses sue to stop requirements

National industry groups representing retail, truckers and independent businesses sued the Biden administration on Wednesday over its vaccine and testing requirements for private companies, claiming they would cause “irreparable harm.”

The National Retail Federation, the National Federation of Independent Business and the American Trucking Associations, told the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in their lawsuit that businesses would lose employees, incur “unrecoverable compliance costs” and face deteriorating conditions in “already fragile supply chains and labor markets” due to the requirements.

The appellate court, considered one of the most conservative in the country, had already halted the vaccine and testing requirements pending review on Saturday, writing that the legal challenges “give cause to believe there are grave statutory and constitutional issues with the Mandate.”

The court-ordered pause came in response to challenges from the Republican attorneys general of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Utah, as well as several private companies. They argued that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which will enforce the mandates, exceeded its authority in an unconstitutional delegation of authority to the executive branch by Congress.

National Retail Federation President Matthew Shay, in a statement Tuesday, said retailers are concerned about implementing the requirements during the busy holiday shopping season. The NRF, which represents the nation’s largest retailers, including Target and Walmart, sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Friday asking for an extension of the deadlines until after January, and requested a meeting with the administration on Tuesday.

“We have consistently and repeatedly communicated our concerns about the practical challenges of meeting those arbitrary targets,” Shay said. “However, it appears that our only remaining course of action is to petition for judicial relief.”

American Trucking Associations President Chris Spear, in a statement Wednesday, said the truckers told the Biden administration that the requirements “could have devastating impacts on the supply chain and the economy,” but the administration has “unfortunately, chosen to move forward despite those warnings.”

“So we are now, regrettably, forced to seek to have this mandate overturned in court,” Spear said.

Labor Secretary Marty Walsh, in an interview with MSNBC on Thursday, said most truckers are exempt from the mandates because they are usually driving alone. OSHA has exempted workers who do not report to a workplace where others are present, as well as people working from home or exclusively outdoors.

The National Federation of Independent Business, in its statement, said the mandates restrict the freedom of small business owners, calling the requirements a “clear example of administrative overreach.”

White House Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Tuesday that the requirements would…