Singapore workers support vaccination and masks: survey | WARC | The Feed

Singapore workers support vaccination and masks: survey

Singaporean workers support vaccine and mask mandates at their workplace, and would choose to get vaccinated over getting tested frequently in order to keep their jobs, according to “COVID and the Workplace”, a 33-country Ipsos survey for the World Economic Forum.

Why it matters

Support for protective mandates varies widely across countries, and is generally highest in Eastern and Southern Asia, Saudi Arabia and Latin America, and lowest in Central and Eastern Europe, Northern Europe and the United States.

Key insights

• Most workers across the world support vaccine and mask mandates and would feel uncomfortable going to work if these protections were not put in place.
• About three in four employed adults globally agree they and co-workers should be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 (78%), undergo frequent testing if they are not vaccinated (74%), and wear a mask in common areas when near others (81%).
• Singapore ranks second among all countries surveyed – 93% of employed adults agree that people in their workplace should be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
• Singapore workers also agree that co-workers should undergo frequent testing if not vaccinated (88%) and wear a mask in common areas when in proximity to others (93%).
• If Singaporean workers were required to get vaccinated or undergo frequent testing to keep their job, about 10 times as many would choose to get vaccinated over getting tested frequently (81% vs 8%).
• Another 7% of Singaporean workers say they would seek to find a way around these requirements but still keep their job, and 2% say they would quit their job or find another one.

Quote

“To further encourage return to the workplace, the expectation of employees largely relies on companies’ non-compromise of vaccination and mask-wearing norms, with the addition of frequent testing. These measures would aid in addressing discomfort and ongoing concerns when returning to the workplace in the coming months” – Melanie Ng, Director of public affairs, Ipsos Singapore.

Background

The 33-country survey was conducted by Ipsos on its Global Advisor online platform and interviewed 14,401 employed adults aged 16–74 between Friday 22^nd October and Friday 5^th November 2021.