Photo: Worth Sparkman/Axios
Tyson Foods said Tuesday that more than 96% of its workers have received the COVID-19 vaccine ahead of the company's Nov. 1 deadline to get all employees vaccinated.
Driving the news: Tyson Foods CEO Donnie King said nearly 60,000 additional workers received the shots after the company announced its vaccine mandate in August. At the time, a little less than half of all employees had been vaccinated.
- While the company said it would fire workers who refused the vaccine, King said Tyson's doors remained open to those who were unvaccinated and agreed to get the shot.
- Tysons Food is the only major meatpacking company to require vaccinations, AP reports.
What they're saying: "Like many, I have worked at this company for decades, and I would be hard-pressed to think of a time when we came together as we did over the past few weeks. We did this together, and we should all be incredibly proud," King said.
- "Has this made a difference in the health and safety of our team members? Absolutely. We’ve seen a significant decline in the number of active cases companywide," King added.
- "The pandemic is not over, and we haven’t yet won the race. But we know we’re in it together, and our future is bright."
Flashback: Tyson Foods was forced to close its doors at meat-processing plants early in the pandemic due to coronavirus outbreaks.