What can employers do if workers avoid COVID-19 vaccines?

More companies are requiring COVID-19 vaccines and taking actions to motivate employees into getting their shots

Businesses for months have been encouraging workers to get vaccinated, in some cases offering incentives like time off or gift cards. But more are taking a harder stance and requiring vaccinations for any remaining holdouts, a push that has gained momentum since Pfizer’s vaccine recently received full approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Employers “feel like they’ve sort of hit that point where the unvaccinated are not going to do it unless there’s something significant making them do it,” said Wade Symons, a partner with Mercer, a benefits consultant.

Symons said other employers will more likely add smaller charges of $20 or $25 per paycheck that might be refunded once the employee is vaccinated.

Employers might also restrict the use of office space, company gyms or business travel only for the vaccinated. In Las Vegas, MGM Resorts International has said unvaccinated employees will not be paid for time off to quarantine if they test positive for the virus.

Vaccine requirements will mainly come from businesses that need workers on a job site, Symons said.

Employers have to offer exemptions or accommodations from vaccine requirements for some who don’t get the shots for medical or religious reasons.

Walt Disney World and Ohio State University are among the large employers that said they’ll make vaccination mandatory since Pfizer’s shot was given the FDA’s full approval. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also has said that military troops must immediately begin to get the vaccine.

Some states like Montana have either banned employers from requiring vaccines or limited when they can issue such a mandate.

———

Can I get ‘long COVID’ if I’m infected after vaccination?

What is being done to distribute COVID-19 vaccines globally?

Do I need to get tested for COVID-19 if I’m vaccinated?

source: abcnews.go.com