EEOC Gives the Green Light for Limited Incentives for COVID-19 Vaccinations
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The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
issued guidance on May 28 that, under equal employment opportunity laws, employers may offer
limited incentives to employees to be vaccinated, so long as the incentives are not coercive. But the agency cautioned that a “very large incentive” could make employees feel pressured to disclose protected medical information. And it noted that other federal, state and local laws may come into play.
Large Exception to Limits on Incentives
Employer incentives for employees to disclose their vaccination status are not substantially limited if employees got the vaccine voluntarily from someone other than their employer, according to Jonathan Segal, an attorney with Duane Morris in Philadelphia.
This exception to the limitation on vaccine incentives is no more coercive than mandatory vaccinations, he noted. The EEOC permits mandatory vaccinations for all employees physically entering the workplace, provided there are reasonable accommodations. Some argue mandatory vaccinations may be challenged under laws that the EEOC does not enforce, such as state laws.
Segal added: "At least under the guidance, an employer should be able to offer a very large incentive—for example, $500—so long as employees are vaccinated by their own provider and not by the employer or a provider acting as an agent of the employer, such as a designated pharmacy or health care provider. Of course, a federal court could come out differently and state law could be more restrictive."
Members may download one copy of our sample forms and templates for your personal use within your organization. Please note that all such forms and policies should be reviewed by your legal counsel for compliance with applicable law, and should be modified to suit your organization’s culture, industry, and practices. Neither members nor non-members may reproduce such samples in any other way (e.g., to republish in a book or use for a commercial purpose) without SHRM’s permission. To request permission for specific items, click on the “reuse permissions” button on the page where you find the item.
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