70% of employees believe vaccines should be required before returning to office: Glassdoor
It’s no secret that people have an array of opinions when it comes to the COVID-19 vaccine. According to a recent survey from online job site Glassdoor, a whopping 70% of employees believe that they should be required to get a vaccine before returning to the office.
Glassdoor found that age and gender play a role people's opinions on the vaccine. According to survey results, those aged 18-34 are less likely (58%) than those aged 35-44 (84%) to agree that employees should be required to get a COVID-19 vaccine to return to the office. Men (74%) are more likely than women (64%) to agree that employees should be required to get a COVID-19 vaccine to return to the office.
Overall most surveyed plan to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Over 3 in 4 (76%) intend to get inoculated when a shot becomes available to them. Those aged 18-34 (66%) are less likely than those aged 35-44 (81%) to say they intend to get a COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes available to them, and nearly 1 in 4 (24%) do not plan to get a COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes available to them.
Glassdoor Chief People Officer Carina Cortez notes that employers are taking the health needs of their employees seriously.
“Resoundingly, employees want to know that employers are prioritizing their health, safety, and wellbeing while taking into account the latest health guidelines and recommendations,” Cortez said.
Another key finding of the report shows that most employees want an incentive from their employers for getting the COVID-19 vaccine: 68% of those surveyed said they would receive the vaccine if their employer offered a cash bonus and/or more paid time off.
When it comes to the work-from-home environment, 86% of those surveyed said they would like to continue working from home on a part-time basis even after their offices reopen. Some folks have gotten accustomed to the "new normal," with some 23% saying they'd consider quitting their job if they were required to return to the office before all employees were vaccinated. Seventeen percent of those surveyed even said that they would consider quitting their jobs if they were required to return to the office five days per week.
“At this point, many employees have been working from home for about a year, and they’ve grown accustomed to the flexibility of working from wherever they want, as long as they have the tools necessary to do their jobs successfully,” said Cortez.
The survey showed a consistent theme: employees would prefer to work from home at least part of the time. "It’s clear that a hybrid approach to remote and in-person work will be a top trend in 2021, and employers should keep this in mind when evaluating the next phase of work for their employees. The future of work is right in front of us, and this survey data reveals that a hybrid working environment will be the wave of the future,” Cortez added.
**Survey Methodology: This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Glassdoor from February 16-18, 2021, among 2,072 adults ages 18 and older, among whom 1,149 are employed and 571 are currently working from home due to COVID-19. This online survey is not based on a probability sample, and therefore, no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.**
Reggie Wade is a writer for Yahoo Finance. Follow him on Twitter at @ReggieWade.
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