Premium of up to $ 500, transport reimbursed, compensation in paid hours ... Some American bosses, eager to return to normal activity, are using great means to encourage their employees to be vaccinated against Covid-19.
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Sectors with a strong need for labor, such as supermarkets, slaughterhouses or farms, have taken the lead.
The Californian company Bolthouse Farms, which sells carrots, smoothies and juices, organizes weekly immunization sessions at its main site and pays $ 500 to all full-time employees accepting the bite.
In the United States, companies can indeed organize vaccination centers themselves if they undertake to operate them during working hours, free of charge and for all workers, employees and subcontractors.
Bonuses paid to vaccinated employees
Meat giant JBS is offering $ 100 to vaccinated employees and has distributed materials in multiple languages to emphasize the safety and effectiveness of immunization.
By mid-March, about a third of its 60,000 employees had received a first dose.
Several large supermarket chains compensate their employees for two or four paid hours.
This "
eliminates the need to choose between earning a living and protecting your health,
" said the head of Aldi inexpensive stores in the United States in January.
If necessary, the Target chain reimburses up to $ 30 for the trip.
Kroger stores offer a bonus of $ 100 to those vaccinated as well as those refusing the injection for medical or religious reasons, provided they follow a health education program.
“
Odd jobs
” are also taken into account: the Instacart shopping delivery platform offers $ 25 to its delivery men, who are not employees.
Possibility of making the vaccine compulsory
The boss of the company United Airlines, Scott Kirby, had raised in January the possibility of making the vaccine obligatory for its pilots, members of crew and other employees.
The company is not yet at this stage, a spokesperson told AFP on Thursday: it is still examining who can have access to the vaccine in different states and how to ensure the supply.
Read also: Covid-19: in which countries are the most vaccines produced?
In the United States, companies have the right to deny entry to their workplace to unvaccinated employees.
The question had been decided at the end of December 2020. It was a question of understanding whether requiring a vaccination to let its employees work violated the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, an American law which adds disability to the prohibited grounds of discrimination. , just like sex or religion.
The US government then confirmed that requiring vaccination if it is "
widely available
" is not a violation of the ADA.
Some employees may also argue that vaccination is not possible for them for medical or religious reasons.
According to a survey released in February by the Human Resources Management Company (SHRM), only 5% of American bosses intended to impose the vaccine on all or part of their employees.
At the same time, employers can also be sued for not having acted energetically enough to avoid an outbreak of contamination.
To accelerate the recovery of the economy, and therefore of consumption, some companies rely on customers: the Krispy Kreme chain thus offers until the end of the year a free donut against proof of vaccination while the Market Garden brewery in Cleveland, Ohio has promised to offer a 10-cent beer to the first 2,021 people who present with a certificate.
