Tech firms gear up to give employees the Covid shot

Companies planning to roll out the works for their employees

On April 7th, Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar had announced that from April 11, covid-19 vaccinations could be done in all private and government workplaces with more than 100 eligible and willing beneficiaries.

To action this, many tech companies are planning to send out emails to their employees on how they can avail of the vaccines at their workplaces.

Interestingly, many companies are planning to make it a ‘free vaccination drive’. A senior HR professional from a top tech company said, “We are giving two options to the employees. Either, they can visit the campus to avail the vaccination free of cost or they can get vaccinated at a place of their choosing and we will reimburse the bill.”

Following the government directive, big hospitals are now reaching out to large companies to collaborate with them for the vaccination drive. However, the big challenge for most companies is to get their employees back to the campus, because of rules put in place to necessitate Work From Home (WFH).

A senior HR manager said, “Ever since Covid broke out, employees cannot directly walk into their cabins. There is a process to be followed. If they want to come into work, they need to raise a request which has to be approved by a team manager. After that designated personnel from admin will approve the request and then issue the ‘work permit’. However, for vaccination, we will be asking employees to raise the request based on their age. Then they will be issued a questionnaire and a consent form. After filling all these, they can walk into the campus after updating the Aroyga Setu app.”

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Another HR professional said there will be regular screening and monitoring facilities. “The use of important touchpoints like coffee machines will be banned.

Employees will be asked not to use specific facilities though the companies are planning to open cafeterias during the vaccination drive,” he said.

Priyanka Mishra, an HR manager, clarified that vaccination will be voluntary and not mandatory as companies cannot insist that their employees undergo vaccination as a condition for continued employment. “An employer can require its employees to submit proof that he/she has been vaccinated. Any such vaccination-related data will qualify as sensitive personal data or information under India’s extent data protection laws and an employer collecting, storing or processing this data will be required to comply with all applicable data protection legislation.”

When Bangalore Mirror contacted hospitals, a top hospital spokesperson said, “The employees are encouraged to bring original and photocopies of their Aadhaar card. If an employee is going for a second dose of vaccine, then s/he should bring their provisional certificate or vaccination card issued by the hospital.

The price per dose will be ₹250, preferably in cash with exact change to make the process quicker. Fasting is not required for the vaccination and employees are advised to stick to a normal routine.” Another hospital said, “We expect prior registration and the minimum registration per day should be at least 100. For Covishield, the registration should be in multiples of 10 while for Covaxin, it should be in multiples of 20. Companies are requested to provide four rooms of 10 x 10 ft besides offering a Wi-Fi facility. The bookings should be done at least one week in advance.”

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