Dear Members,

 

With the rapid spread of the more contagious COVID-19 Delta variant throughout Ohio, increasing the vaccination rates among eligible Ohioans is even more critical to ending the pandemic and its impact on businesses, their employees, and the broader community.

 

You can play a critical role by providing your employees with accurate information and resources about COVID-19 vaccination, and by making vaccination as easy and convenient as possible while respecting their questions and concerns.

 

There are several key actions that you as an employer can take to help end the COVID-19 pandemic:

 

Communicate with your employees about COVID-19 vaccination. The Ohio Department of Health has created a COVID-19 Employee Vaccine Toolkit that businesses can use with their employees and includes talking points, an FAQ, information about myths vs. facts, flyers, and signs, and trusted COVID-19 vaccination resources.

 

Encourage your employees to talk with their healthcare providers about COVID-19 vaccination for themselves and their eligible children. Consider inviting a medical professional to your worksite to answer employee questions and address any concerns about COVID-19 vaccination (a local hospital or local health department may be able to provide a medical professional). Surveys consistently show that healthcare providers are among the most trusted sources of medical information for patients.

 

Encourage your employees to visit coronavirus.ohio.gov, Ohio’s information hub containing a wealth of COVID-19 information and resources. Resources include FAQs, myths and facts about COVID-19 vaccination, and a tool for finding nearby vaccination providers (at gettheshot.coronavirus.ohio.gov).

Offer flexible, non-punitive leave options for employees to get vaccinated. Consider allowing employees to get vaccinated during work hours or to take unpaid time off. Allow employees to experience side effects after vaccination that prevent them from being able to work to use paid or unpaid sick leave.

Host an on-site COVID-19 vaccination clinic for your employees who are interested in getting vaccinated. The Ohio Department of Health has developed a list of participating COVID-19 vaccination providers arranged by the county who are willing to partner with businesses on vaccination clinics. The provider list is posted on a COVID-19 Vaccination Program for Businesses and Organizations webpage which also contains a COVID-19 employee vaccination toolkit, vaccination clinic checklists, and printable flyers and posters. Offer an on-site vaccination clinic more than one time. Employees who are hesitant at first may become more confident about vaccination after observing coworkers get vaccinated.

 

Please consider taking all of these actions now to help your employees get accurate information about COVID-19 vaccination and to arrange for easy vaccination for those who want it.

 

Sincerely,

Ohio Department of Health