After the COVID-19 vaccines began to be widely available, many employers began offering incentives, such as gift cards, days off, and other financial rewards, to get their reluctant employees vaccinated. Now, that policy has taken on a new twist, as some companies reportedly are considering monthly pad deductions for employees whose personal choice is to remain unvaccinated. If they do so, mostl likely the cuts would be referred to as “health coverage surcharges.” That’s because in some cases, COVID-19 can lead to expensive hospital stays which means company paid health insurance premiums could go up. They claim it would be similar to the charges which some employers apply to workers who smoke. Just how much traction the idea may get is up in the air… with many experts saying the job market is already tight and employers are having trouble filling available jobs. They say if some companies institute the surcharges, those employees who choose not to be vaccinated will simply move on to other employers who will welcome them without assessing them.
