Tyson Foods with Ketchum
Beating COVID-19: #TysonTogether
Ketchum changes minds around COVID-19 vaccination for Tyson Foods
Beating COVID-19 required reaching out across philosophical, religious and cultural barriers for the Tyson Communications team at Ketchum. With Ketchum’s multi-pronged approach, Tyson vaccinated 96% of its workers and was able to keep America’s food on the table. For its efforts, Ketchum has been honored with Ragan’s Platinum HR Award in the Employee Communications category.
While families at home hunkered down for an uncertain length of time as COVID-19 swept the country and isolation rules were uncertain, the workers who provide food for the nation still needed to go to work. To do so, Tyson Foods employees needed to be vaccinated.
“We … were putting our business at risk. But getting vaccinated is the single most effective tool to protect (team members), their families, and our communities,” said Tyson CEO Donnie King.
The company needed to get half of its employees vaccinated by Nov. 1, 2021. Meanwhile, 37% of agricultural workers (a similar profile to Tyson’s workforce in general) were anti-vax, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation study at the time. The Tyson Communications Team at Ketchum needed to make a difference.
So, the communications team took a multi-pronged approach. First, they organized 400-plus onsite vaccination events, booster clinics and listening sessions. These in turn were supported by guest speakers and physicians, social media promotion and in-plant signage tailored to the population of each specific plant.
The team also utilized the Tyson employee app, digital signage, a sweepstakes drawing, and testimonials from other employees. Town halls and 500+ individual or group conversations with senior leaders and outside medical experts were broadcast across the organization. The communications team leveraged Chief Medical Officer Claudia Coplein and senior leaders at key plants with low vaccination rates. An intranet hub let employees look at vaccination results and resources. The team also made sure to get Tyson’s largest unions on board.
Finally, the communications team successfully brought in earned media opportunities to spread the word and keep the messaging consistent. A prominent New York Times reporter spent several days at Tyson HQ and plants working on two exclusive stories, one of them a front-page article about the campaign. Ketchum’s Tyson Communications Team efforts both helped keep workers safe and improved Tyson’s reputation for health and safety in a time of crisis.
With the Beating COVID-19, #TysonTogether campaign, Tyson achieved a 96% vaccination rate, meaning 60,000+ people received the vaccine from the employer. The White House cited Tyson’s efforts as a success.
Congratulations to the Ketchum team!