Employment trends expert weighs in on whether unvaccinated employees should be penalized
With hopes of a return to normalcy slowly deteriorating thanks to the Delta variant and concerning upticks in COVID cases across the country, employers are struggling to find ways to stay afloat. One way that employers are trying to cut costs?
By asking employees who have refused the COVID vaccination to pay a premium surcharge on their company’s health plan.
“Many companies have led with a carrot approach when it comes to encouraging employee vaccinations, but unfortunately, vaccine hesitancy is leading many employers to reach for the stick now,” says Rob Wilson, President of Employco USA and employment trends expert.
Wilson says that the rationale behind such a decision is not just to encourage more employees to get vaccinated, but also to hold employees accountable for the higher healthcare costs which can be a risk of skipping the jab.
“If companies have a lot of unvaccinated employees, then their health costs will certainly go up as a result. We know that unvaccinated people are more likely to require medical intervention and hospital care if they become infected with COVID, and even after they respond to treatment, they could have long-haul symptoms that could haunt them throughout the future,” says Wilson. “There is an economic toll associated with the choice not to get vaccinated, and it’s a burden that will be carried collectively, such as by employers who may face higher premiums as a result of rising costs from unvaccinated employees.”
Wilson says that plenty of employees will take issue with the surcharge, so companies will have to proceed with caution.
“You’ll need to be very clear about the terms of the vaccination surcharge, such as how long it will last, who will be exempt, if it will impact family members on the employee’s plan, as well as how it may be impacted by any boosters which may become necessary as we move forward,” says Wilson.
For more on this topic, please contact Rob Wilson at rwilson@thewilsoncompanies.com.