SURVEY SAYS: Getting Vaccinated

Last week, I asked NewsDash readers, “Have you gotten or will you be getting vaccinated, and how do you feel about employers requiring employees to be vaccinated before returning to the office?”

Nearly six in 10 respondents (58.3%) work in a plan sponsor role, one-quarter are recordkeepers/TPAs/investment consultants, 13.3% are advisers/consultants and 1.7% each are attorneys and CPAs.

Among respondents, 28.3% reported they have gotten their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 23.3% said they are fully vaccinated. An additional 38.3% indicated they will get vaccinated, while 5% said they will not. Another 5% said they haven’t decided if they will get vaccinated.

Asked how they feel about employers requiring employees to be vaccinated for COVID-19 before returning to the office, 46.7% said they feel employers should be able to require it. One-third stated they feel employers should not be able to require it, and 20% indicated they are not sure how I feel about it.

Reading the comments left by respondents was like listening to a debate about whether employers should be able to require employees to get vaccinated, though it seems like more of those on the “no” side chose to leave comments. Those against employers requiring it mostly said it is a personal choice and employers shouldn’t get involved. Those for employers requiring it spoke about the good of the whole, and one compared it to how schools require vaccinations of children. No Editor’s Choice this week.

A big thank you to all who participated in the survey!

Verbatim

At a certain point, we are all grown-ups who have to decide what risks we’re willing to take in life. This is one of those moments!

It’s not political or an infringement on rights. Get vaccinated to protect others. That’s the truth. These times have been very character revealing.

Looking forward to getting vaccinated, and I am happy that others that have gone before me can share their experience with me so I know what to expect!

Employers should be able to require it unless the employee has a severe allergy to it

I don’t understand the anti-vax side. Never have. There is no support for the position whatsoever. I’ll get vaxed to contribute to herd immunity so the herd mentality of the anti-vax crowd will continue. It’s America – I’m used to supporting everyone else.

I will get vaccinated at the earliest possible opportunity.

Getting vaccinated isn’t necessarily for you… it’s to benefit society. Just get it done!

This is a personal health decision. Employers should not have a say.

Too much is unknown about the long-term consequences of RNA vaccines.

I do not think organizations that are outside of the medical field, first responders etc. should require it but I do think they should encourage it. As someone who works in the office daily and has through the pandemic, I feel more secure knowing my co-workers have been vaccinated. Statics show that people who go into an office have a higher rate of exposure than those who work from home.

One should be free & Privileged to decide for themselves what to do with their own life and body. At the same time, one also should take educated decision and have responsibility to others safely.

I built natural antibodies after getting COVID in November so I see no reason to get vaccinated at least until everyone else that wants the vaccine can get it. If you want it, get it. If you don’t know if you want it, wait. If you don’t want it or cannot take a vaccine, I do not see how an employer can require you to get it.

While I realize it is a personal choice, those not getting the vaccine for reasons other than religious/medical need to realize they are preventing the states from opening everything up.

I do believe vaccinations should be a person’s individual choice; however, an employer should also have the right to require only vaccinated persons into their buildings and may then consider a more permanent remote work environment for their employees as an alternative, if the job allows for that model, or define exceptions to the vaccination rule. All schools that I have attended or that my children have attended require certain vaccinations, and we’ve always wanted our children vaccinated, but may be employers can work together with schools to define vaccination requirements/exceptions. A person also has the right to choose to work for that employer, and while job opportunities aren’t abundant at this time, that person may want to consider alternatives if possible, as not all employers may have a vaccination requirement, as it should be their choice to employ one.

It would be best if employees would just choose to get vaccinated. If they don’t, it is on them if they get sick. However, I may agree with employers of health care workers requiring vaccination.

I think it’s a hard choice for employers to decide whether they can require folks to be vaccinated before returning to work. I would like to think that most will be vaccinated voluntarily and not as a requirement to return to work. I work in a small office so I would hope my employer would require those that choose not to be vaccinated to stay home or wear a mask and be socially distant for everyone’s safety.

I lean toward requiring workers to be vaccinated before returning to the office; however, I’m not sure of the legality of such a requirement.

I see no reason why someone would not want to be vaccinated, like we have done to virtually eradicate so many diseases in my lifetime.

To my knowledge most employers (perhaps outside of the medical industry) have not been able to require influenza vaccines. So why would a different virus allow employers to require vaccination?

Although I don’t feel employers should require the vaccine, I do think they should encourage employees to get it. Employers can help by making sure everyone understands it’s safe and will help move the country and the economy forward.

No other vaccinations are required to work, why should this be any exception to the rule; it would be invasive

Although mandating vaccinations for a return to work doesn’t seem a comfortable thing to say, it’s the lesser of 2 evils. (The other being continuous COVID spread)

I’m very curious about the ones who are anti-vaccine. To me, they seem to be part of the problem.

I work in the K-12 public school system. Just like hospitals that can require their staff to be vaccinated for the flu, I support the employers right to require employees to vaccinated for COVID barring a religious or medical exception. It’s to protect not only them but everyone else. And it supports our goal of getting all students back to school full-time in person!

In my opinion I would rather see a company mandate a vaccine as terms of employment since the law states a company can do that. It would be better than having the employer act aggressively to those who do not wish to get the vaccine for whatever reason.

We will not require vaccinations, but definitely encourage them. We are considering a bonus for employees fully vaccinated.

If employers have the opportunity to help their employees get vaccinated for COVID-19 or the annual flu shots with onsite or special vaccination clinics, it’s a nice benefit offering to the employees. Vaccinations could be encouraged but should not be mandated.

Obtaining herd immunity is essential to economic prosperity

No requirement needed for employees working from home. Strongly encourage office staff to get the vaccine. In our office, we’ll be widely spaced apart because so many have converted to permanent work from home status.

Fail to understand how anyone could refuse the opportunity to avoid a death prone situation. Get vaccinated people!

The vaccination, like any ‘voluntary’ medical procedure, should remain just that…voluntary. No one should ‘require’ someone to be vaccinated. It’s a personal choice.

Very few employers should be able to require the vaccine. Health care is the most logical where you can make a business case for the requirement. We have already had one vaccine clinic at work and anticipate having another now that the age has been lowered.

Unless someone has a religious or medical reason not to get the vaccine, I feel like this falls under the needs of the group outweighing the wants of the individual. If someone cannot get vaccinated and has complicating factors that would make COVID dangerous for them, don’t they also have a right to be protected?