MANY EMPLOYERS UNLIKELY TO MANDATE A COVID-19 VACCINE

According to experts, while private U.S. companies have the liberty to require employees to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, many are unlikely to do so. While a vaccine is critical to keeping the workplace safe for those in industries such as retail, warehouses and factory work, potential legal and cultural reasons may make employers think twice about requiring inoculation. Currently vaccine mandates only exist in the healthcare industry where employees are required to get a flu shot and within the public school sector, where children are required to get their childhood vaccinations.  In May 2020, when the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said employers had the right to require employees to get a COVID test before returning to work, some speculated this might be extended to vaccination as well.  A Drexel University Law and Public Health Professor, Robert Field, recommends employers considering a mandate should wait until vaccines go through the full regulatory review process. The situation in the U.S. is similar to Europe where employers are also unlikely to mandate vaccination. Here in the U.S. larger employers like Ford Motor Co. and Kellogg Co. are preparing now to make vaccines available to the employees on a voluntary basis.  Early polls have shown that many Americans are hesitant about getting the vaccine.  Objection to vaccines at large typically results from medical contraindication or religious/personal beliefs. With emergency use authorization of the COVID-19 vaccinations in place, the hope is that 20 million Americans could be vaccinated by the end of 2020 and most Americans will have access to the vaccine by the middle of 2021.

Source: https://kfgo.com/2020/12/02/u-s-employers-could-mandate-a-covid-19-vaccine-but-are-unlikely-to-do-so-experts/