So far, with 2021 nearly almost over, 21 percent of employers have a vaccine mandate in place. By the year's end, that could more than double to where a majority of them, at 52 percent, have such requirements. Such numbers are according to the results of a Willis Towers Watson survey, conducted August 18-25, with 961 companies participating from the United States. A Wednesday morning release on the survey from Globe Newswire acknowledges that it "is a dramatic increase."
According to the release:
The survey, conducted between August 18 and 25, found that by the fourth quarter of 2021, over half (52%) of employers could have one or more vaccine mandate requirements in the workplace. These range from requiring vaccination for employees to access common areas such as cafeterias to requiring vaccination for a subset of employees to requiring vaccination for all employees. This is a dramatic increase from the current 21%. Specifically, nearly a third (29%) of employers are planning or considering making vaccination a requirement to gain access to the workplace, and almost a quarter (21%) are planning or considering vaccination as a condition of employment for all employees.
Perhaps even more noteworthy is how many more employers are tracking the vaccination status of their employees. Already, 59 percent of employers do so:
Additionally, the number of employers that will track whether employees have completed their vaccination is increasing. Nearly six in 10 (59%) currently track their workers’ vaccination status, and another 19% are planning or considering doing so later this year. A majority (62%) of those require proof of vaccination, such as completed Centers for Disease Control and Prevention vaccination cards, while 36% rely on employees to self-report.
Those employers who incentive their employees to get vaccinated is at a much lower rate. For instance 17 percent offer financial incentives, while 14 percent are planning or considering it. "Most employers at this point are not planning or considering either of these financial tactics," according to Globe Newswire.
Kathryn Mayer discussed what opposition there is to such mandates, as well as the ramifications, in her reporting for Human Resource Executive. The results are according to research from Qualtrics:
But despite the significant support for vaccine mandates, a large number of people also said they may quit if there was a vaccine mandate at their job. The Qualtrics poll found almost a quarter of employees (23%) would strongly consider leaving their place of work if their employer mandated vaccines, up from 19% in a March survey that asked the same question.
Opinions on employer mandates vary across industries, locations and demographics. For instance, mandates have big backing in the tech industry, with 75% of tech workers supporting vaccine mandates, compared to 59% of retail workers and 58% of government workers. And respondents who are younger, Democrats and male are more likely than those in other groups to say they would consider quitting if there wasn’t a vaccine mandate at their job. Retail workers, older workers and Republicans are generally less supportive of vaccine mandates, the data finds.
The conflicting data proves the precarious position employers nationwide are in regarding their decision over vaccine mandates. “It’s very much a tug of war and incredibly difficult to manage,” [Ben Granger, head of employee experience strategy at Qualtrics] says.
Further complicating employers’ decision over whether to require workers to roll up their sleeves are fears over the Great Resignation, in which workers are leaving or considering leaving their jobs at a fast pace, leaving many employers struggling to hire or hold onto employees. Granger says many employer clients tell him they want to mandate vaccines for their workers but worry about the risk of losing even more talent by alienating workers. “I empathize with all of my clients now because no matter what they do, some of their employees will be very upset and some will be very happy and supportive.”
These mandates sound like a dream come true for the Biden administration. When President Joe Biden announced vaccine mandates for federal workers in late July, a fact-sheet from the White House noted the administration "will encourage employers across the private sector to follow this strong model."
