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Highlights
- The UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson recently announced that most patients who are seriously affected due to Omicron are the ones that are not vaccinated.
- Google announced in mid-December that it will implement pay cuts and eventually fire unvaccinated employees.
- Ikea and Wessex Water have decided to cut sick pays of the unvaccinated staff.
The pandemic has drastically influenced the work environment across countries; be it adaptation to the work from home culture or the change in requirements of specific skills. Now, the changes are seeping through almost everywhere; new rules and regulations are forming shapes.
Vaccination: the need of the hour
To overcome the pandemic, the utmost important aspect is to get vaccinated. Mass vaccination drives started taking place around the world from early 2021. Experts believe that’s the most effective way of controlling the transmission of the virus.
However, not everyone is in support of the vaccine: some are voluntarily not taking the jab, and some can’t do it because of medical conditions. To make matters clear and promote vaccination, various MNCs are taking stringent steps.
GOOD SECTION: Australians urged to go for 3-dose vaccination as Omicron rages on
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Pay cuts and slashed sick pay for unvaccinated employees in MNCs is now a brimming concern for many.
The first party in the row is Google
The corporation announced in mid-December that it will implement pay cuts and eventually fire unvaccinated employees. Why is Google being so stringent about it? The answer is simple- the tech giant is aspiring to get its employees back to office as early as possible.
In December, Google asked its employees to submit their vaccination status along with necessary documents or apply for exemption due to medical or religious reasons. The deadline for the same is Jan 18, after that the corporation will give a “paid administrative leave” for 30 days. If they are still not vaccinated; the employees would be given “unpaid personal leave” for up to six months and then final termination of the unvaccinated ones will occur.
ALSO READ: Australia to donate 60M COVID-19 vaccines to developing countries
Next in line is Ikea
Ikea is taking different measures to impose vaccination rules among its employees. It has decided to cut sick pays of the unvaccinated staff. This would include people who are exposed to the virus and need self-isolation or people who tested COVID positive.
The decision is inflicted due to rising costs and staff absence at a significant number. However, exceptions are there- people who have mitigating circumstances like pregnancy or other medical reasons will receive full sick leave payments.
The UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson recently announced that most patients who are seriously affected due to Omicron are the ones that are not vaccinated.
Source: © 2022 Kalkine Media®
INTERESTING READ: Delta & Omicron show hoarding vaccines hurt advanced economies too
The third one is Wessex Water
Another firm, Wessex Water is implementing sick pay cuts. However, their vaccination rules are not as stringent as the above ones. The company has said that any employee, who hasn’t received at least one jab (apart from those with medical exemptions) would receive only statutory sick pay in case of self-isolation.
Wessex Water has also reported that the absence of employees has drastically been on the rise recently due to COVID-19 spread; thus, now they are emphasising on vaccination rules so that work goes uninterrupted.
Such vaccination rules are implemented in many other companies as well. All in all, it seems that cutting pay cheques and sick pays could be an effective measure for promoting employees to take the jab.
