• Robert Preidt and Robin Foster
• Posted August 27, 2021

Half of American Workers Support COVID Vaccination, Mask Mandates in Workplace

COVID-19 vaccination and mask mandates in the workplace have the support of roughly half of American workers, a new poll shows.

About 59% of those working remotely and 47% of those working in person are in favor of vaccine requirements, while about one-quarter of workers in both groups are opposed.

Workplace mask mandates have the support of 59% of remote workers and 50% of in-person workers, according to the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey conducted Aug. 12-16. Notably, the poll was conducted before the FDA granted full approval to Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine.

About 71% of in-person workers said they're vaccinated.

Both vaccine requirements and mask mandates were supported by 6 in 10 college graduates -- who are more likely to have jobs that can be done remotely -- and by about 4 in 10 workers without college degrees, the Associated Press reported.

About 70% of respondents who work in a health care setting approve vaccine requirements at their workplace.

The poll of more than 1,700 adults also found that workplace mask and vaccine mandates have less support among white workers (42% and 44%, respectively) than among Black workers (73% and 53%, respectively) and Hispanic workers (59% and 53%, respectively), who are more likely to have front-line jobs, the AP reported.

So far, many vaccine requirements have been issued by private companies with employees who have mostly been able to work from home during the pandemic. The companies also already have workforces that are largely vaccinated and consider the requirement a key step toward eventually reopening offices, the AP reported.

In contrast, few companies that rely on hourly workers have followed suit because the companies are concerned about losing staff during labor shortages and turnover. Exceptions include Tyson Foods and Walt Disney World, which reached a deal this week with its unions to require all workers at its theme park in Orlando, Fla., to be vaccinated, the AP said.

More information

Visit the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for more on COVID vaccines.