By Ben Thompson
OVER a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, many Malaysian businesses are facing new challenges of prolonged lockdowns with an unknown end. However, the rollout of the vaccination programmes around the world offers a glimpse of hope at the end of a long tunnel.
Now, with over 12 million vaccine jabs administered in Malaysia, another major challenge has presented itself—persuading people to take it.
We now know that getting roughly 70 to 80% of a country’s population vaccinated is key to achieving herd immunity and containing current and future outbreaks. But, even in countries where vaccine supplies are no longer an issue, the pace of vaccinations is slowing because people remain hesitant.
One recently released report by the United Nations Children’s Fund found that people are sceptical of the vaccine and fear its side effects in many parts of the world. Equally, many of them doubt the vaccine’s efficacy and actual content, and don’t think it is necessary to combat the pandemic.
Malaysia’s sentiment on vaccination
Although Malaysians generally have a more positive outlook on vaccinations, with our recent study showing that 81% of Malaysian employees want to get vaccinated, online disinformation has fuelled ‘vaccine choosiness’ and harboured fear of getting jabbed.
It has been reported that some 52,000 Malaysians had missed their appointments, with Kedah registering more than 20,000 missed appointments. Although we do not know the reason behind why a large number of people are skipping their vaccination appointments, there is no doubt that the rise in vaccine misinformation plays a role in vaccine hesitancy.
To overcome these doubts, the awareness gap needs to be bridged to protect individuals and our communities. The government and companies also need to play their role in disseminating vaccine information and debunking fake news.
What Malaysian employers can do
With a working population of 15.1 million adult Malaysians, we believe employers have a significant role to play in changing people’s perceptions and driving forward the country’s vaccination agenda to achieve herd immunity goals.
Although there is no one-size-fits all approach to the situation—there are certain best practices we can apply from other countries. In the US, for example, a recent study by the University of Arizona found that 60% of companies plan to ask for proof of vaccination in order to continue employment, and they intend to extend the policy to new hires, too.
The Government has since announced that Malaysian employers can register to purchase vaccines for their employees. In Selangor alone, more than 50,000 companies have registered over two million of their employees for vaccinations.
According to our study, we know that the majority of Malaysian employers want their staff to be vaccinated. In fact, 70% of Malaysian employers wanted to mandate vaccinations for their staff, although this is not legally enforceable.
But there are other ways to encourage employees to take their jabs. By using persuasive internal communications tools, organisations should emphasise the benefits of getting vaccinated, including appeals to keep family, friends and co-workers safe.
Beyond this, educating staff on the bigger picture and pointing out the importance of vaccines in reopening borders and reuniting families can be impactful.
Malaysian employers should also consider implementing a variety of new policies that prioritise employee health and welfare during this time. Enhanced health policies, including offering emergency expansions of paid medical leave to people experiencing symptoms, getting vaccinated or recovering from COVID-19—will go a long way in supporting employees and driving forward vaccinations.
Malaysian companies can also offer family leave for workers to care for sick or vaccinated family members should they suffer side effects. Beyond that, implementing flexible working arrangements, work schedules and enabling schedule swaps for shift workers will also accelerate the uptake.
The pandemic has truly tested employers and their ability to adapt, communicate, and manage employees. While the long-term implications of the pandemic on the workforce are yet to be seen, it is important for businesses to prioritise their employees safety, health and wellbeing. – July 19, 2021
Ben Thompson is the CEO of Employment Hero.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
