If you work in a large or medium-sized business, Biden’s action plan requires your boss to pay you for the time you spend getting vaccinated and recovering from possible side effects.



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President Joe Biden

President Joe Biden speaks during a joint press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the East Room of the White House July 15, 2021 in Washington, DC. Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images

  • The White House has unveiled a broad action plan to increase the vaccination rate in the United States.

  • Employers with 100 or more workers would be required to provide paid time off for immunizations.

  • Many unvaccinated workers have previously expressed concern that they cannot afford time off work.

  • See more stories on the Insider business page.

In a move that will impact more than 80 million workers, a new COVID-19 plan from the Biden administration would require employers with more than 100 employees to mandate vaccines or weekly tests, or face severe penalties. fines of $ 14,000.

In addition, the plan will require those same employers to offer paid time off for workers to get vaccinated and recover from any possible side effects.

Last April, Biden announced a small business tax credit offering to compensate employers with 500 or fewer workers to cover an employee’s time off to get and recover from the vaccine.

The rule will be developed and enforced by the Department of Labor’s Occupational Health and Safety Administration “to ensure that no worker loses a dollar in wages because of being vaccinated.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control, it’s common for patients to experience side effects, including fever, chills, fatigue, headache, nausea, and muscle pain for up to three days after a vaccination. The CDC also says these reactions are more common with mRNA vaccines like Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna.

In its advice to employers, the CDC recommends staggering vaccination appointments so that a single department or business unit is not too affected in the event of adverse reactions.

A June survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation of 1,888 adults found that about two in 10 unvaccinated employees said they would be more likely to get the vaccine if their employer gave them paid time off.

Zachary Livingston, who operates a subway near Denver, told the Washington Post he had neither the time nor the mental space to get the shot after working 60 hours a week for months.

“By the time I’m out of work it’s time to go to bed,” Livingston said.

John Jameson, who heads an advocacy group that tries to reach people hesitant to vaccinate in Colorado, told the Post that paid time off would be a game-changer, especially for low-paid workers.

“There is no doubt that if people had the option of taking time off work, it would be easier to get them vaccinated,” he said. “If you have a minimum wage job and are worried about missing two days of work, that’s enough of a deterrent for some people to show up for their second shot.”

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