90% US & UK employers will require staff to be vaccinated

Around nine out of 10 bosses in the US and UK will require or encourage employees to have the Covid-19 vaccination before they head back to the office, according to a new study.

Additionally around seven out of 10 employers are currently performing Covid-19 testing for their employees, confirmed the research conducted by Arizona State University’s College of Health Solutions with The Rockefeller Foundation. The survey reveals insights into vaccination policies, testing and contact tracing, employee well-being, pandemic response and preparedness, the pandemic’s financial impact, and the future of work from both American and British businesses.

“More than one year into the Covid-19 crisis, it’s clear that employers across the US and UK are now taking a more proactive role and creating their own policies to manage the pandemic,” stated Mara Aspinall, Project Co-Lead, Professor of Practice at Arizona State University’s College of Health Solutions; and Advisor to The Rockefeller Foundation. “In making the physical workplace as safe as possible, almost 70% of employers surveyed are testing some or all of their workforce and nearly 90% say that they will require or encourage Covid-19 vaccination in the months ahead.”

RETURN TO WORK PLANS

As vaccination rates increase globally – and more than half of US and UK adults having received at least one shot – employers and employees face complex challenges about when and how they will return to work. The latest key findings of its Covid-19 Workplace Commons – Keeping Workers Well survey include:

• Vaccinations are the top priority. Around 88% of employers plan to require or encourage their employees to be vaccinated against Covid-19. Additionally, 59% plan to incentivise employees to be vaccinated; and 60% say they will require proof of vaccination from employees. 
• Productivity and morale are up. The survey also provided surprising insights on worker productivity and morale. The majority of employers say said their employees’ engagement and productivity have gone up since the pandemic and 44% report that employee morale has gone up; compared to 26% indicating that morale went down, since the pandemic began. 
• Mental health and employee burnout is a big concern. Around 77% of employers said employee mental health has now become a top priority since the pandemic started. For companies in the US, 79% of employers indicated that employee mental health wellbeing has become a top priority for their company. 

FUTURE OF WORK MODELS

“This pandemic clearly has had a devastating impact on our collective mental health,” reported Dr Jonathan D Quick, Managing Director for Pandemic Response, Preparedness and Prevention at The Rockefeller Foundation. “The data indicate that employers see this crisis and are working to find ways to help employees restore their mental wellbeing.”

So what will the future work environment look like post-pandemic? Companies are looking towards offering a more flexible working environment. Around three quarters of companies indicated that they intend to offer more flexible or expanded work from home policies for their employees post-pandemic.

Overall, more than six out of 10 companies surveyed will offer a virtual work environment or a hybrid model – a combination of virtual and physical work environment – post-pandemic. For the rest of 2021, the majority of companies (63%) will allow employees to work from home through the rest of the year.

FACE-TO-FACE OFFICE TIME

Most companies indicated they are not ready to completely abandon their physical workplace space in a post-pandemic world. The majority of employers (68%) believe that employees should be in the office at least 20 hours per week. Employers want employees back in the office at least partially during the week to help create and maintain social interactions with colleagues. It also ensures employee productivity, and allows for spontaneous idea sharing and problem solving, noted the report.

“The pandemic has changed the traditional office environment in many ways – possibly forever – yet a majority of employers are indicating they see real value in employees continuing to interact face-to-face,” said Nate Wade, Project Co-Lead and Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives at Arizona State University’s College of Health Solutions.

MORE KEY FINDINGS

Additional survey findings include:

• The top three challenges that companies are facing in returning employees to the physical work environment are employees not wanting to return to in-person work; safety of employees; and cost of making workspace safe for employees. 
• Around 84% of employers will allow Covid-19 vaccinations to be administered at their facility if supplies are available. 
• Half of employers reported an increase in the use of available company resources related to mental health since the pandemic began.

The results from 1,339 employers (from mid- to large-size companies) are available in the report Back to the Workplace: Are we there yet? Key Insights from Employers One Year Into the Pandemic. 

All employees worldwide are ‘anxious’ about returning to the workplace, according to a new global study. Click here to read more.