How to verify employee vaccination status

Even as we enter the endemic stage of the virus, fear of catching or spreading COVID is still one of the most common reasons employees are nervous to go back to the workplace. Creating a safe workplace environment should be a priority for companies who want to empower their people to return to the office. One way to prioritize workplace health and safety is to verify your employees’ vaccination status before they come into the office. According to our At Work 2022 workplace trends report, 75% of employees said they’d be comfortable with a workplace vaccine requirement. Employees want to feel confident knowing that they’ll arrive and leave the office healthy, and businesses are working to make that happen.

Verifying employees’ vaccination status isn’t difficult if you have the right tools and policies in place. Below we’ll walk you through the steps to create a trusted and scalable way to verify your employee’s vaccination status.

1. Make sure your workplace is in compliance

We’ve learned in the past few years that policies and guidelines around COVID can change quickly. So you’ll want to make sure your business is keeping up with federal and state mandates and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s best practices. By ensuring your organization remains compliant, you’ll steer clear of costly legal issues. As you scale verification of your employees' vaccination status across geographic locations, be sure to double-check the local guidelines and adapt your policy where needed.

2. Invest in an automated way to verify vaccine status

Manually checking each employee’s vaccination card is time-consuming and ineffective. You’ll want to invest in a digital tool that can help your HR and workplace teams get the information they need in an easy and automated way. That’s where a digital vaccination and health check tool comes in. Once you’ve invested in a tool that fits your needs, follow these steps to verify your employees’ vaccination status:

1. Train existing and new employees on how to use the tool.
2. Require employees to upload their proof of vaccination, weekly COVID tests, or daily health checks in an app on their phone.
3. Have your admin teams review and approve the information so folks can schedule days to come into the office.
4. Communicate new vaccination requirements such as booster shots. Employees will need to upload an updated vaccination card and go through the approval process once more.

3. Make sure visitors are healthy

Your employees aren’t the only ones who come to your workplace. You also welcome visitors, maintenance teams, catering crews, cleaning staff, and more. Although these individuals may not be on-site for very long, it’s still important to make sure anyone who enters your workplace is healthy and approved to be there. Your existing visitor management tool should prompt your visitors to upload their vaccine cards before they arrive on-site. Taking this step to make sure everyone on-site is safe and healthy will go a long way in making your employees feel comfortable in the office.

4.Provide education and resources

Two years in and we’re all still learning new information about COVID. Plus, some employees still have discomfort and confusion around mandates. Along with regularly communicating your policies, be sure to provide educational resources on COVID variants, vaccines, and what to do if you get sick.You can build out a specific COVID resources page and nominate qualified team members as go-to’s for questions around health policies. This will help your team feel confident in your organization and empowered to uphold the safety standards you’ve set.  

5. Inspire confidence in your employees

The workplace should be a space people can collaborate, connect, and be productive. It shouldn’t be somewhere people are afraid to enter. Building two-way trust is key for your people to feel assured that their company is taking their health and safety seriously. You want to trust that your people will take care of themselves and follow policies, and your people want to trust that you prioritize their health and safety. You can do this by sending out frequent policy updates and reminders on the latest health policies. Also, consider training leadership and management on how to empower people to take sick time off and communicate their needs.

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Verifying your employees’ (and visitors’) vaccination status is better for your employee’s health and the longevity of your organization. Find a seamless digital way to make this process easier for your people and your organization, and you’ll be able to adapt as health guidelines continue to evolve.

Ready to turn your vaccine verification plan into action? Try out Envoy Protect for free to get started.