With apologies to Shakespeare, we’ll confess to the conscious adulteration of the opening line of Hamlet’s famous soliloquy in contemplation of suicide. Somehow, though, the implicit comparison of what amounts to a potentially fatal roll of the medical dice with the Bard’s poetically nihilistic expression of the hopelessness of life seems metaphorically apt–OK, perhaps we do go a bit over-the-top to make our point…if so, mea culpa, but the point is the point.

There is, however, no legitimate conundrum within the healthcare community when it comes to COVID. In the wake of the administration of over 9 billion doses worldwide, the vaccine has conclusively demonstrated both safety and remarkable efficacy, and the death rate among unvaccinated Americans has been consistently greater–more often than not far greater–than a dozen times that of the vaccinated. Indeed, the most recent data (January 2022) indicates that the unvaccinated are 20 times more likely than the vaccinated to die from COVID-19. The science is inarguable–full stop.

So our purpose here is not to debate the irrefutable, but rather to consider the obligation of organizations to respond with policies that assure the safety and well-being of their constituencies. This has sometimes proven a thorny issue for companies unwilling to challenge the demonstrably erroneous beliefs of that minority of employees who refuse vaccination based on either misinformation regarding the medical science or some misplaced political agenda. It shouldn’t need to be said, but let’s be clear–political considerations have no place in a company’s fulfillment of its duty to protect its employees. 

As is highlighted above, every organization has the affirmative responsibility to minimize risk to the health and safety of its workforce, its customers, and the communities it serves–this is not a new concept. And this obligation cannot be characterized as anything other than absolute. Apart from the moral imperative, it’s also good business. 

A recent national survey found that a majority of US employers already have or will require their employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19. The survey, from Willis Towers Watson, a global advisory and risk-management firm, also found that just 3% of employers said their vaccination mandates have resulted in a spike in resignations, and nearly half of those surveyed believe the mandates could actually help in the recruitment and retention of employees. The survey also determined  that, in addition to vaccination, many companies are planning to require testing and masks to protect employees returning to the workplace. As reported by Jack Kelly writing in Forbes this week, the list of companies implementing such measures is growing–though not nearly at the exponential rate of the COVID variant du jour, Omicron. Prominently mentioned were Citigroup, JPMorgan, United Airlines, Google, Tyson Foods, Kroger and the Mayo Clinic, and a legion of others are, however gradually, coming to grips with the harsh realities of a persistent pandemic. Notably, a December 2021 GALLUP report reveals that since July 2021, a clear and consistent majority of workers favor vaccine requirements at work.

Simply put, there is no valid reason for any company, institution, or organization of any stripe not to establish a vaccination requirement for their workforces. To do otherwise compromises the safety of not only the workforce, but all they come into contact with in the course of their work and otherwise.

#Think About It.