Statement from AG Alan Wilson on OSHA’s private employer vaccine mandate

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) – South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson issued the following statement after OSHA released the details of its private employer vaccine mandate.

“This is garbage and it’s unconstitutional so we will be fighting it. OSHA does not have the authority for this kind of mandate,” Attorney General Wilson said.

He said South Carolina plans to join other states in filing a lawsuit to stop the regulations.

Attorney General Wilson said, “Vaccinations for every employee have nothing to do with OSHA’s regulation of workplace safety. The President is flouting the rule of law to engage in federal overreach at its worst. He has little regard for the constitutional liberties of our citizens.”

When President Biden announced the mandate back in September and that OSHA would issue the details later, the president said, “This is not about freedom or personal choice. It’s about protecting yourself and those around you….” Attorney General Wilson disagrees. “This is about freedom and personal choice, Mr. President. Private companies have the freedom to require their employees to get vaccinated, just like they have the freedom to require a dress code, but a federal agency does not have the authority to impose that mandate on private employers.”

Attorney General Wilson has spoken to numerous South Carolina business owners who say the mandate will crush their businesses.

“As I’ve said before, this is not about whether vaccines are a good idea, this is about following the rule of law and not allowing a federal bureaucracy to abuse power and flout the law,” Attorney General Wilson said.