More than half of U.S. companies are planning to impose COVID-19 vaccine mandates in the workplace by year end, with almost a quarter considering vaccination as a condition for employment, according to a national survey of nearly 1,000 employers, Reuters reported. In the face of a resurgence in COVID-19 cases, spurred by the highly contagious Delta coronavirus variant, that has strained the U.S. health care system, many companies have come out with mask mandates and changed their vaccination policies. Google's parent Alphabet Inc., Walmart Inc., and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. are among the growing list of employers requiring some or all staff to get the vaccine. The survey, which polled 961 U.S. companies that together employ around 9.7 million people, found that by the fourth quarter of 2021, over 52% of employers could have one or more vaccine mandate requirements, an increase from 21% currently. The mandates could range from requiring vaccination for staff to access common areas such as cafeterias to requiring vaccination for all employees, according to the survey conducted by Willis Towers Watson between Aug. 18 and 25.
