COVID-19 vaccinations are a highly contentious topic in America. Many U.S. adults still haven’t gotten the shot despite the Food and Drug Administration’s recent (FDA) full approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
This reluctance is seen as a problem by health experts, who contest that vaccination is the most effective way to control the widespread coronavirus Delta variant. It’s also a problem for employers wishing to maintain uninterrupted operations and keep employees healthy.
So, if an employer wants a vaccinated workforce but is dealing with vaccine skepticism, what are their options?
In short the options available to employers include:
- Education & encouragement
- Ensuring that managers and employees have the information they need to explain why and how the vaccine is important to both the individual and the organization in plain English can help
- Encourage managers and leaders to share their personal stories of why they got vaccinated to inspire others.
- Mandates for all or some employees
- Vaccination mandates are commonplace with other vaccinations in other areas (schools)
- Vaccine mandates must comply with both the ADA and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
- Incentives to get vaccinated
- Many companies are offering time off, gift cards, raffle chances and other prizes to encourage employees to be vaccinated
- Penalties/Surcharges for not being vaccinated
- Delta has begun charging unvaccinated employees a surcharge on their health benefits to offset the cost of COVID health costs
These varied methods are discussed further in the attached PDF.