By Lynne Curry bio
Question:
What do we do if our employees refuse to get vaccinated? Several dozen employees have stated they don’t want the vaccine, as doctors don’t know enough about the vaccine’s long-term side effects. They point out that the Food and Drug Administration sanctioned the vaccines through an emergency use authorization procedure and rushed the vaccines through. We run a mid-sized company. Our management team read your Dec. 21 post about mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policies.
https://workplacecoachblog.com/2020/12/mandatory-covid-vaccinations-the-rules/
Now that vaccinations are starting, we’re considering a mandatory policy for safety reasons. How are other employers handling this?
Answer:
As a management team, you’re not alone in your concerns. Surveys by both the Employee Benefit Research Institute and Pew reveal that 21% to 24% of U.S. adults “will not get the vaccine” and don’t believe that more information will change their minds.1, 2 This resistance stems from an overall lack of trust in the vaccination process and our government and from political reasons.
Here’s what you need to consider, and what many employers are choosing:
Reasons for requiring vaccinations
Many employees won’t feel safe until they know their co-workers have received the vaccine. Some customers may be more willing to do business with companies that require employees to receive vaccinations.
Employers have responsibility under the Occupational Safety and Health Act to ensure a safe workplace for employees. An employer’s failure to take necessary steps to protect their workforce might result in productivity loss, compensation claims, and other legal penalties and challenges.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) guidance issued Dec. 16, 2020 gives employers the ability to establish a mandatory vaccination policy if employees remaining unvaccinated would pose a direct threat to coworkers or customers.3
As one example, one of my remote-site colleagues experienced a COVID threat on Jan. 8 after an unvaccinated dentist hygienist who had been in my colleague’s mouth for 45 minutes on Jan. 7 showed COVID-19 symptoms.
Employers that require vaccinations as a condition of employment need to ensure their requirements are both job-related and a business necessity. Employers need to ensure their polices comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, federal and state anti-discrimination laws (in which religion is a protected category) and any other state or local workplace laws and regulations.4
Reasons not to require mandatory vaccinations
Employers already offer policy exemptions to employees who fear the vaccine might exacerbate established disability or medical conditions or for whom vaccination goes against their religious beliefs. Employers may elect to respect the views of employees that express other personal, social, cultural, or political concerns.
Employees who have avoided an infection by being fastidious in using personal protective equipment and following other safety measures may feel they don’t need vaccinations to remain COVID-19 free.
Employers may worry that a policy may increase their liability should an employee have an adverse reaction to a vaccination. Further, some union contracts may prevent mandatory vaccines.
Employer options
Since my Dec. 21 post appeared, I’ve received calls from 18 employers. Most of them plan to strongly encourage their employees to get vaccinated.
Some employers may provide employees educational resources to ease their fears, offer cash incentives to get vaccinations, or may offer employees paid time off to receive the vaccination.
Finally, while employers can require mandatory vaccinations, those I’ve spoken to have chosen to leave the vaccination decision up to their employees.
Personally, I’m choosing vaccination. We’ve had over 400,000 deaths from COVID-19 in the U.S. to date, and no deaths, that I know of, from the vaccine. We’re all navigating uncharted waters and we have to choose.
2https://www.ebri.org/docs/default-source/fast-facts/ff-368-cehcscovid-10nov20.pdf?sfvrsn=a05e3a2f_4
3https://www.natlawreview.com/article/eeoc-guidance-covid-19-vaccinations-what-now-employers
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