With the government relaxing the age and availability requirements, India Inc is preparing to vaccinate its entire workforce—at its manufacturing and office locations
As Covid-19 cases continue to grow across the world, Indian Inc is preparing a vaccination campaign for the employee. To inoculate their workers, both start-ups and Indian businesses are looking for collaborations with hospitals and local governments. Apollo Tyres, Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki, Tata Steel, ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India (AM/NS), JSW Steel, Jindal Steel and Power, Panasonic India, Dalmia Bharat Group, and L&T are among the companies that are preparing to vaccinate their workers and their families.
Automobile manufacturers are leading the charge in this initiative. Schaeffler India, a global auto component maker, has declared that it would cover the cost of vaccination for all qualified employees. The local unit of Volkswagen AG, Skoda Auto Volkswagen India Private Limited, has also announced a similar move for its employees. In the coming months, TVS Motor Company, headquartered in Chennai and one of India’s largest two-wheeler manufacturers, will pay for Covid-19 vaccines for its 35,000 workers and their immediate family members.
Companies such as Maruti Suzuki and Tata Steel are forming partnerships with hospitals and participating in discussions with local governments about vaccinating the employee population. Meanwhile, industrial firms are concentrating their efforts on vaccinating factory employees first, believing that a single optimistic individual would spread to the rest of the workforce. Companies are considering naming nodal officers who will work with district health authorities and private vaccination centres to ensure a smooth vaccination process.
Companies are also demanding that the government allow employees under the age of 45 to be vaccinated. The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) has urged the government to make vaccination available to people aged 18 to 45. The Covid-19 vaccine is currently only available to people over the age of 45. FICCI president Uday Shankar also urged the government to expand Covid-19 testing across the states in a letter to Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan. Shankar said that the 18-45 age group in the country had been acting as super-spreaders of Covid-19 infection. “According to a recent study conducted in Tamil Nadu, people aged 18 to 45 accounted for 51% of the recent increase in coronavirus cases. We urge you to open up vaccination for this age group to help subside the spread of infection as well as the severity of cases in the region, given that there is no shortage of vaccines and there is a huge scope for augmenting inoculation ability through greater private sector involvement,” Shaker chimed in.
Wipro said that currently 3% of its employees work from offices, but that this number is expected to decrease in the coming weeks as more employees work from home. “Employees are allowed to take daily vacations to recharge their batteries. COVID care centres are available in a number of cities for our workers and their immediate family members. If an employee tests positive for COVID, we will provide extended paid leave in addition to their normal leave to enable them to recover.”
