Trader Joe's, Instacart join companies paying employees to get COVID-19 vaccine

BY LEXI LONAS - 01/15/21 THE HILL

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Trader Joe’s and Instacart are the latest businesses to announce that they will be giving their employees extra pay for getting the coronavirus vaccine.

Grocery store Trader Joe’s will give employees two extra hours of pay per dose of the COVID-19 vaccine they need, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday. Instacart will give staff a $25 stipend.

Dollar General had announced on Wednesday that they will give their employees four hours extra pay and adjust their schedules as needed. s

Hospitals and nursing homes are also starting to offer their employees money if they get vaccinated against COVID-19. A county-run nursing home in Northampton County, Pa., is offering their employees up to $750 to get vaccinated.

Other companies might be hesitant to offer these incentives so soon because it is not clear when their employees will be eligible for the vaccine.

Millions across the country have already received the vaccine, but the rollout is still going much slower than officials anticipated. Strict guidelines slowing down the process are starting to be lifted in the hopes vaccines will get to more people quicker.