NEW YORK—While large corporations are giving employees incentives to get their COVID-19 vaccines when it’s their turn and in some cases are requiring the shots, few small business owners plan to require that their employees get inoculated against the virus, according to a new CNBC|SurveyMonkey Small Business Survey, CNBC reports.

In the survey, 42% of small business owners indicated they won’t mandate vaccinations against COVID-19, while 22% said they do intend to require the shots when available. The online survey was conducted January 25-31 among 2,157 small business owners nationwide.

Small foodservice and hospitality providers were more likely to report support for required vaccinations, although enthusiasm is still muted. The survey found that 28% of business owners in this group plan to mandate COVID-19 vaccines for their staff, 33% said they are undecided and 32% said they won’t require the vaccines.

Public health officials see vaccines as a needed step toward fully reopening the U.S. economy. The pandemic has hit small businesses especially hard, with the survey finding that 43% of owners polled have had to shut down operations at some point because of the pandemic. Among these, 20% said they have reopened with limited capacity, 10% said they haven’t reopened and 4% said they have opened and closed several times.
Just over half of small business owners said they could continue operating for more than a year under the current business conditions which have limited their operations.

Meanwhile, NBC News has launched a Plan Your Vaccine tool to help Americans find out when and where they can sign up to receive a COVID-19 vaccine according their state, occupation and age group. The tool compiles data from the CDC and state health departments.

Find opportunity within the COVID-19 crisis and discover answers to guide your post-pandemic plan by exploring the COVID Survival Pack—a four-hour learning experience filled with tips and advice for navigating a range of operational challenges, including people, vendors and systems in a post-pandemic workplace. Watch the COVID Survival Pack today.

Coronavirus Resources

NACS has compiled resources to help the convenience retail community navigate the COVID-19 crisis, including information about how to educate employees about the vaccines and other vaccine-related human resources advice. For news updates and guidance, visit our coronavirus resources page.