‘Jabs for jobs’ is a disaster in the making for employers

Only allowing vaccinated workers back to the office risks creating a two-tier society – not to mention a torrent of unfair dismissal cases

Facebook is doing it, so too Google and Netflix. The technology titans of Silicon Valley are leading the way when it comes to one of the most controversial issues of the post-pandemic workplace.

In California, a “jabs for jobs” policy among employers is gathering steam with staff being told that they require a Covid certificate if they want to return to the workplace. It’s not quite the same as saying someone can be fired for refusing to be vaccinated but libertarians will rightly worry that this is mandatory inoculation by the back door.

Like Covid passports for travel and leisure activities, there is a danger that requiring employees to be jabbed creates a two-tier society – with those that haven’t been vaccinated either struggling to be hired, or worse, simply fired.

If it becomes a “back-to-work” requirement then the risk is that firms are essentially left with a dual workforce – those that have taken the vaccine and are back in the office, and those that haven’t and are forced to continue working from home as a result.

It doesn’t take a genius to work out that this will quickly lead to accusations of discrimination and a torrent of unfair dismissal cases. Having dodged the issue on mask-wearing and the return to work more generally, the Government once again seems content to pass the buck and allow businesses to decide for themselves.

And where disputes arise, which they inevitably will, ministers understandably are content to let the courts decide. No wonder, a jabs for jobs policy is a cultural, legal and ethical minefield.

There is no dispute that vaccines are essential to the recovery. The success of the jab rollout is the reason why the Government has been able to reopen the economy. But making vaccination compulsory is another step entirely.

Harry Potter publisher Bloomsbury is among those in the UK that have told staff they must be jabbed if they want to return to the office but they are firmly in the minority, and seem destined to remain so.

The large majority of companies will steer well clear of any “jabs for jobs” policy. The logistical and practical reasons alone will dissuade most bosses from introducing jab requirements. There are enough barriers to getting people back to work already without complicating matters further.

And that’s before you navigate the complex and often entirely legitimate reasons people have for not taking up the vaccine such as pregnancy, allergic reactions, or other health grounds.

Google boss Sundar Pichai says that the tech giant will have exemptions for those with medical or “other reasons”. The first category should be fairly easy to define. But it will be much trickier to decide what constitutes the latter.

How will an employer get around the fact that vaccine take-up is lower among black and minority ethnic communities? Vaccine hesitancy is not the same as being a devout anti-vaxxer. But even those that object for philosophical reasons have a right to do so, however foolish the majority think their views are.

Demographics play an important part too. Studies have shown that scepticism is lower in high income households. Therefore it is easier for a company in Silicon Valley, where the workforce tends to be exceptionally welleducated and wealthy, to convince staff to take a jab. By the same token, persuading a supermarket, factory, or warehouse worker is likely to be harder.

A study from the Office for National Statistics published in February found that around one in six adults – equivalent to 16pc – in the most deprived areas of England expressed vaccine hesitancy, compared with 7pc in more affluent areas. Though by June, the gap had narrowed to 8pc and 3pc respectively.

The same study found big disparities according to age group as well. Around one in six aged 16 to 29 years reported vaccine hesitancy – the highest of all age groups.

The natural complacency of youth will no doubt be a factor, but so too public health messaging that has consistently highlighted the disproportionate threat of the virus to the elderly and vulnerable rather than younger people, and social media disinformation.

Companies will overwhelmingly adopt the carrot over the stick approach, encouraging employees to get inoculated. As Shell boss Ben van Beurden says, the oil explorer doesn’t think mandatory vaccination is “appropriate” so the company’s management will simply “talk about the value of being vaccinated”, and also facilitate vaccination in the office.

And if all else fails, there’s always the approach adopted in New Jersey where anyone over 21 who gets their first dose gets a free beer. What’s wrong with a bit of bribery if it averts another lockdown?

‘There are enough barriers to getting people back to work already’