Kroger, the supermarket chain that controls QFC and Fred Meyer, said on Friday that it will offer employees a one-time payment of $ 100 after receiving the coronavirus vaccine. Employees who cannot get the vaccine for medical or religious reasons can take an “educational health and safety course” to receive the bonus, the company said.
The payment is aimed at encouraging workers to get vaccinated and “recognize the contributions of our associates,” said Kroger executive Tim Massa in a statement on Friday.
The federal government says employers can demand the vaccine, although for now most companies say they are not yet planning to require it.
Kroger workers who “receive the full doses recommended by the vaccine manufacturer COVID-19” will be entitled to the $ 100, the company said.
Trader Joe’s said last month that he will pay employees an additional two hours of work if they get vaccinated.
Few Oregon grocery store workers have access to the vaccine. The state has limited distribution to health professionals, teachers and nursing home residents until this week, when residents over 80 can begin to schedule appointments.
The national union representing Kroger workers, United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), called the payment a “slap in the face”, however, noting that the company announced this week that it will close two stores in Southern California in response a local mandate to raise wages by $ 4 an hour during the pandemic.
Seattle passed a similar $ 4 requirement.
“If Kroger really cares about its employees, the company must share the profits that the pandemic has generated with all of its frontline grocery workers across the country,” said UFCW President Marc Perrone in a statement asking for free vaccines for employees. Separate from vaccine payment,
Kroger said on Friday that it will also provide “a $ 100 store credit and 1,000 fuel points” to workers, including supermarket and drug store frontline employees from February 11.
– The Seattle Times