Many Hispanic migrant workers get the COVID-19 vaccine

ORLANDO, Fla. — On Friday, a day after the Biden Administration announced the federal coronavirus vaccine mandate for businesses with more than 100 employees, many Hispanic migrant workers in Orange County went to their local vaccine site to get the jab.

Gile, a 26-year-old hotel worker, said she got her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine at the Consulate of Mexico in Orlando after she was told by her job she’ll need to in order to keep her employment.

“They said I need to prove I’m vaccinated or provide a negative coronavirus test weekly or else I would lose my job,” she said. “That’s why I’m here. I need to keep my job.”

She’s not the only one to get the vaccine because of work, in fact, the nonprofit Ventanilla De Salud Orlando, which works with the Consulate of Mexico, reports it’s vaccinated more than 3,500 people who say they did it for their jobs.

Gile said she was scared to get the vaccine because of what people told her would happen.

“I was afraid to get it because everyone at work would say you could die from the vaccine, but now we’re all getting it,” she said.

Vaccine hesitancy among migrant workers has been an issue Hispanic nonprofits such as The Farmworkers Association of Florida, Ventanilla De Salud, the Hispanic Federation and Clinica Mi Salud have battled against all year.

The Hispanic Federation reports it’s helped vaccinate more than 11,000 Florida residents through its vaccination education program, which targets the Hispanic community.