Nearly one-quarter of employed Americans who probably or definitely won ’ t get vaccinated would consider doing so if offered cash bonuses or stipends .
CASH BONUSES / STIPENDS
24 %
ADDITIONAL PTO
21 %
GIFTS : GIFT CARDS , FOOD VOUCHERS , ETC .
16 %
ON SITE COVID VACCINATION AT NO COST
9 %
DATA COURTESY OF SHRM industry — whatever it is — publicly announce that they got the vaccine , that resistance is going to fall ,” Burner says , citing former President Trump ’ s unexpected public endorsement of the vaccine as the kind of event that can shift perception among more hesitant groups .
Another factor in moving the needle on employees ’ vaccine enthusiasm could be the choice their spa makes to mandate , incentivize or merely encourage vaccination . Initial research from SHRM indicated that 40 percent of organizations said they did not plan to require a vaccination before allowing employees to return to work in person , but that number has risen , and more recent data shows that 60 percent of organizations say they will not mandate vaccination . That drop in enthusiasm for vaccine mandates may be attributable to employee resistance around the idea , concerns about potential legal ramifications or both . However , a greater percentage ( 74 percent ) of organizations intend to recommend that their workers get the COVID-19 vaccine .
Spas in the southern U . S . may face a greater challenge when it comes to encouraging employees to get vaccinated , Burner notes , because respondents from that region say they are less likely than people in other regions to opt for vaccination . Outside of that , Burner believes that industry type will factor most heavily in organizations ’ decision to issue a mandate .“ Healthcare , nursing homes , spas — those situations with high [ levels of ] physical contact — those are the areas where we believe that we ’ re going to see more mandates ,” he explains . Though SHRM did not conduct research specific to spas , they did find that 94 percent of healthcare organizations will encourage vaccination — the highest rate among the industries examined . In addition , large organizations ( 500 employees or more ) are most likely to encourage vaccination for their workers , at 79 percent .
For spas that may plan to offer incentives to employees to promote vaccination , SHRM ’ s research contains a number of relevant points . Of the incentives SHRM tracked in their research , cash bonuses or stipends ( 24 percent ) were most popular among vaccine-hesitant respondents , followed by additional PTO ( 21 percent ), gift cards ( 16 percent ) and on-site vaccination at no cost ( nine percent ).
In general though , Trent Burner advises spas to carefully consider any potential incentives , noting that monetary incentives can prove particularly complex .“ Depending on the state , monetary incentives can get dicey ,” he says .“ For example , in Virginia , I think anything over $ 250 becomes taxable income . We ’ ve also found , though , that additional vacation days or flexible work schedules , those kinds of things are just as powerful , if not more powerful than monetary incentives .”
As the rollout continues and vaccine availability increases , more and more spas will have to make decisions regarding their policies and messaging surrounding vaccination . Regardless of a spa ’ s specific approach to encouraging vaccination , however , Burner notes that one factor has the power to undercut those efforts : the example set by leadership .“ One of the most important things we found is the tone from the top . So , if your spa directors are not getting the vaccine , then this issue is dead in the water for the employees of that spa ,” he says .“ It ’ s got to start with them , seeing leadership buying into the vaccine and then talking about it .” n
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