Dollar General Corp. offer employees a deal: get a Covid-19 vaccine and you will receive four hours of pay.
The retailer, which has 157,000 employees, is among the first large U.S. employers to encourage staff vaccination, a sign that companies with essential workers believe that mass inoculation is critical to overcoming the pandemic.
Grocery stores, airlines and transit companies are testing priority access to Covid-19 vaccines for their workers, hoping to protect them from the growing number of cases nationwide and ensure to customers, which in turn strengthens the business.
Some big employers have said they want to vaccinate as many workers as possible, but they will stop requiring staff to receive shots. Verizon Communications Inc. told staff this week that it will not require vaccination and CVS Health Corp., the pharmacists who distribute vaccines and are eligible for doses, said it encourages and does not require vaccination.
Many hourly workers face challenges in reaching vaccine appointments, from child care needs and transportation limitations to scheduling restrictions on multiple-job employment. Some retail workers are wary of seeking medical services because they receive the minimum wage and often do not have access to work-sponsored or leisure-sponsored health insurance coverage.