Springdale, Ark. – August 3, 2021 –Tyson Foods is requiring its team members at U.S. office locations to be fully vaccinated by October 1, 2021. All other team members are required to be fully vaccinated by November 1, 2021, subject to ongoing discussions with locations represented by unions.
This action makes Tyson Foods the largest U.S. food company to require COVID-19 vaccinations for its entire workforce.
“Getting vaccinated against COVID-19 is the single most effective thing we can do to protect our team members, their families and their communities,” said Dr. Claudia Coplein, Chief Medical Officer, Tyson Foods. “With rapidly rising COVID-19 case counts of contagious, dangerous variants leading to increasing rates of severe illness and hospitalization among the U.S. unvaccinated population, this is the right time to take the next step to ensure a fully vaccinated workforce.”
A memo to Tyson Foods team members from President & CEO Donnie King can be found here.
The company is also providing incentives — $200 to its frontline team members, subject to ongoing discussions with locations represented by unions. This is an expansion of the company’s existing policy of compensating workers for up to four hours of regular pay if they are vaccinated outside of their normal shift or through an external source.
Exceptions to the vaccination mandate will involve workers who seek medical or religious accommodation.
