With many employees wary, company leaders prepare their return-to-office coronavirus vaccine policies

By Jessica Davies

This article is part of the Future of Work briefing, a weekly email with stories, interviews, trends and links about how work, workplaces and workforces are changing. Sign up here.

If there is a CEO with his finger on the pulse of the workforce and how it views the coronavirus vaccine rollout, it is David Niu.

Niu runs Seattle-based TINYpulse, a platform that queries staff on issues in the workplace on behalf of clients like Deloitte and Unilever. For him, employee buy-in will be essential as employers formulate plans for the vaccines and the subsequent return to the office.

Bosses “have to make sure employees have felt the chance to be heard,” he said.

Currently, much employee skepticism remains, despite reassurances by company leaders that they are working to ensure a safe workplace. In a recent global poll of 2,500 workers by Wakefield Research for Honeywell, 70% of respondents said they did not feel it was completely safe at their offices. Further, 24% threatened to look for a new job before returning to the office if necessary safety measures were not implemented.

Alan Spurgeon, founder and director at U.K.-based marketing agency Hedgehog Digital, stressed that vaccinations will not be required at his workplace. His argument: doing so could pose a number of legal issues such as potential injury claims if the vaccines were to end up having side effects. Others may object to getting inoculated because of religious beliefs, dietary considerations or health conditions, he added.

Likewise, in the U.S., large employers like Facebook, Marriott and Discover Financial Services have said they will encourage, but not require, vaccinations, as The Wall Street Journal reported. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has issued guidance suggesting that employers may require workers to be vaccinated, with certain accommodations around health concerns or religious beliefs.

Meanwhile, employers are redoubling their efforts to persuade staff that the vaccines are safe while offering them incentives to get the shots.

For example, New York commercial real-estate company SquareFoot, which reopened its headquarters mid-July after making certain changes, plans to give employees paid time off for inoculations and will cover the costs associated with them. Corporate medical advisers have said employers should plan for some workers to require sick days after receiving their doses in the case of fever or other side effects.

“We’ve been patient and understanding throughout the pandemic with everyone, recognizing that we all have different needs, concerns and responsibilities,” said SquareFoot president Michael Colacino. “If someone is fearful of getting a vaccine, we will speak to them privately about how we can best support them. It’s a challenging time for our country. We must lead with empathy and come up with solutions that satisfy all.”

Bradley Stevens, CEO of LLC Formations, a business consulting firm based in Miami, is setting up a temporary clinic at its office to administer vaccines for those who have not already been inoculated. He understands that there are those who may not want to be vaccinated for various reasons, …read more

Source:: Digiday