Viking Yacht Co. held an initial in-house vaccination clinic last week, inoculating 210 of its more than 1,350 employees with the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine.
The program, organized in conjunction with southern New Jersey’s AtlantiCare, was held at the builder’s facility in New Gretna, N.J. Viking plans to hold another vaccination effort at its Mullica River plant later this month.
Viking said the vaccinations are intended for workers as well as their families.
“Over the past year, we’ve worked hard to protect our boatbuilders and their families from the Covid virus,” president and CEO Pat Healey said in a statement. “We believe our efforts helped slow the spread, and now we’re stepping up to be part of the solution in ending this pandemic by making it easy and convenient for our boatbuilders to get vaccinated.”
Viking reported that more than 550 employees have completed or are in the process of being vaccinated.
“Our target is to have 70 percent of our workforce vaccinated to achieve herd immunity, but the overall goal is to have all of our boatbuilders protected,” said Viking executive vice president Drew Davala. “We will remain diligent in our efforts to keep our workforce safe.”
