As the country gears up to recover from the impacts of the pandemic, companies continue to prioritize the safety and well-being of their people. If there is anything businesses have learned during the past year, it is that people should always come first.
Safeguarding the safety of their people ensures companies can withstand the impacts of the pandemic and strengthen their organization for what comes next. For snacks maker Mondelez Philippines, this includes providing protective vaccines against COVID-19 for their people and their families.
“Our frontline essential workers have continued to make, ship, and sell our food products during the pandemic, to ensure Filipino consumers always have continued access to the brands they love,” shares Ashish Pisharodi, Country Director of Mondelez Philippines. “When the pandemic started, we strengthened our safety procedures in our plant and office. These included enhanced protocols around sanitization, mask and face shield use, site-specific technology-enabled visitor management, and social distancing measures. We established on-site testing protocols and secured the services of an infectious diseases doctor on-site to continue guiding us. Colleagues who did not need to report to the office have also been working from home for more than a year now and benefit from a Flexible Working Policy to allow them time to perform both their work and home duties.”
This support has also extended to sharing expert guidance to adopt safe practices when commuting to and from work and at home, to reinforce the health and safety culture in its workplace.
The same principle applies to the Company’s next step of vaccinating its people, as well as their families.
“Experts are clear that safe and effective vaccines are what will end this pandemic,” adds Ashish. “Vaccine hesitancy has been observed to varying degrees across the globe. To encourage and incentivize our people to get vaccinated as soon as they’re made available, we will cover the cost of vaccine for each employee as well as two of their chosen beneficiaries. We will also provide flexibility to allow time for employees to get the vaccine. A survey we conducted recently reveals that most of our employees will avail of the vaccine as soon as local rollout plans permit.” Mondelez Philippines has placed an order for vaccines from Moderna through a Tripartite Supply Agreement signed by the latter, a private sector representative, and the Philippine government. “
“It is important for us to provide access to vaccines to our people’s families as well to ensure they not only stay safe at work but more importantly, at home. For employees who wish to secure vaccines for additional family members, we have also offered them this flexibility at cost,” ends Ashish.
While vaccination will not be mandatory, the survey results are a source of great encouragement. Mondelez Philippines is anticipating the arrival of the vaccines in a staggered manner through this year and is preparing its teams for vaccination day.