37 percent of unvaccinated workers would quit over COVID-19 vaccine mandate, KFF poll

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• The survey found 37 percent of unvaccinated respondents would quit their job if their employer required they get vaccinated or take weekly COVID-19 tests.
• When the testing option was taken off the table, 72 percent of unvaccinated workers said they would quit.
• Five percent of unvaccinated adults, about 1 percent of all adults, have already left a job due to vaccine mandates.

A new survey shows more than one-third of unvaccinated workers in the U.S. said they would quit their jobs rather than comply with a COVID-19 vaccine or testing mandates, as more businesses, universities and state and local governments are requiring their employees to take the jab. 

The Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) poll released Thursday found 5 percent of unvaccinated adults, about 1 percent of all adults, have already left a job due to vaccine mandates. But the survey found that number could soon increase, as 37 percent of unvaccinated respondents, 5 percent of adults, said they would quit their job if their employer required they get vaccinated or take weekly COVID-19 tests. 

When the testing option was taken off the table, 72 percent of unvaccinated workers said they would quit. About 6 in 10 unvaccinated workers said they would likely seek an exemption. 

The data comes as the Biden administration is drafting rules that will require all businesses with 100 or more employees to require the vaccine or frequently test workers. The requirement is still under review. 

One in 4 workers said their employer has required them to be vaccinated, an increase of 16 percentage points of workers who said the same since June, when just 9 percent said their employer required vaccination. Meanwhile, half of workers said they do not want their job to put in place mandates. 

The survey included 1,519 adults polled Oct. 14-24. 

Nearly 58 percent of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

Source: The Hill