Employees of the appliance company have a lot to lose, both physically and financially, if they choose to not roll up their sleeve.

As efforts ramp up to get the rest of America’s population vaccinated, appliance company Whirlpool is offering their staff a staggering incentive. 

Employees who choose to roll up their sleeves will receive a $1000 cash bonus. 

That’s $800 more than their previous offer, with employees first promised cash awards of $200. 

It comes as vaccination rates in the US state of Michigan straggle, with only just over half of their population fully vaccinated.

Both newly vaccinated and previously vaccinated employees will be eligible for the pricey incentive, according to company spokesperson Chad Parks.

“Our employees’ health and safety remains our top priority.”

“Throughout this pandemic they have been working tirelessly to serve our consumers, who are depending on our products more than ever to clean, cook and provide proper food and medicine storage in their homes, and we are working to ensure we can deliver.”

Another company on the incentive bandwagon

Whirlpool joins Devon Energy and Bolthouse Farms who are offering their employees $500 each to get vaccinated, as cases across the nation continue to rise.

There seems to be a growing trend as more companies look to award their employees for getting the jab, opposed to mandating the vaccine.

Investment company Vanguard launched a similar incentive earlier this year.

The cash bonus cost the company roughly $16,500, issuing each eligible employee a $1000 dollar grant until October 1st.

It’s unclear for how long Whirlpool’s offer will last.

A step in the right direction

The bonus follows the announcement of the Biden administrations’ emergency rule, stating that large companies must ensure their entire workforce is vaccinated, or tested weekly.

Companies that don’t comply with this rule could face costly fines of up to $14,000 per violation.

Written by Rebecca Borg