TENNESSEE (AP) – As COVID-19 vaccinations continue in the United States, some companies are offering financial incentives to encourage their workers to get vaccines.
Dollar General is one of the first large companies to announce extra pay for vaccinated workers. The Goodlettsville, Tennessee-based retailer, which operates about 17,000 stores in 46 states, said on Wednesday that it will give employees the equivalent of four hours of pay if they receive the vaccine.
Dollar General said the extra payment is intended to offset the travel time, mileage and daycare expenses that employees will have to receive the vaccine.
“We don’t want our employees to have to choose between getting a vaccine or coming to work,” said Dollar General.
The retailer said it is encouraging workers to take the vaccines, but does not require them. In its annual report last February, the company said it had 143,000 employees.
A vaccine advisory panel at the US Centers for Disease Control voted late last month on recommendations for vaccine distribution. The panel said the grocery store workers – who would include Dollar General employees – should be in the second group to receive injections, after health workers and nursing home residents.
Firemen, police, teachers, prison officials, postal workers and others are in this second group, along with people aged 75 and over. There are about 50 million people in that group.
The vaccine will be distributed in Utah at the county level, which means that each resident’s experience will be different depending on where they live. More information can be found here.
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