Local funeral home buys special pins to indicate fully vaccinated employees
Many local businesses are taking further steps to ensure customers feel safer in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, by announcing that their staff members are either partially or fully vaccinated.
Joe O’Neil, funeral director of O’Neil Funeral Home, purchased a dozen red pins for his employees to wear.
"It says COVID-19 vaccinated, got a dozen off the internet, gave one out to the staff. As soon as I laid them down on the desk they descended on them faster than they descended on the doughnuts.”
Members at O’Neil’s funeral home are fully vaccinated and wearing it on their sleeves.
O’Neil says it’s important to do, as he is often working face-to-face with the virus -- transferring the deceased from hospitals many of whom perished from COVID-19.
“COVID-19 is one of the most terrifying diseases any of us have ever seen in our life. Maybe people don’t see it the way we do, but it scares us.”
O’Neil and his workers are tending to bereaved families when hosting their funeral services. Sometimes up to 40 people at once congregate, if physical distancing measures allow.
He says the severity of the COVID-19 virus makes it that much more important to announce the staff’s double-dose status to people walking through their doors.
"Especially here I am finding it’s extremely important…people coming in and they are very happy. I get asked all the time, where did I get this?” he says, as he points to his pin.
Over at Flooring Liquidators, Tony Stone is a sales associate working face-to-ace with customers on a daily basis.
Tony Stone, left, a sales associate stands next to Flooring Liquidators Owner Moe Rida in London, Ont., Wednesday, July 28, 2021. (Jordyn Read / CTV News)
Tony Stone, left, a sales associate stands next to Flooring Liquidators Owner Moe Rida in London, Ont., Wednesday, July 28, 2021. (Jordyn Read / CTV News)
Stone and his two coworkers are all partially vaccinated with second doses scheduled for next week.
“It’s excitement in a sense but more of a duty to do our part for the community.”
Stone says it makes all the difference for customers.
“People do come in, they ask us, ‘Are you vaccinated?’ because it gives them a sense of relief...people are like, 'Yeah he is vaccinated, this is the guy I want to deal with, this is the lady I want to deal with.'"
While both establishments have staff that are either fully or partially vaccinated, they are not asking for the same requirements from customers.
“We do believe that everyone still has the right to choose when it comes to vaccinations,” says Stone.
Back over at the funeral home, O’Neil sings a stronger tune.
"It’s in bad taste but it's the truth. Why would we keep people away that haven’t been vaccinated? It’s tomorrow’s business walking through the door.”
The Ontario government has not made COVID-19 vaccinations mandatory and has left it up to businesses to decide whether or not to make it mandatory for their employees and patrons.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
Explosion at train station leads to discovery of stolen car on Montreal's South Shore: police
Police are investigating after a BMW exploded in the St-Lambert Exo train station parking lot on Montreal's South Shore.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
Snakes almost on a plane: U.S. TSA discovers a bag with small snakes in passenger's pants
According to an X post by the Transportation Security Administration, officers at the Miami International Airport found the small bag of snakes hidden in a passenger's trousers on April 26 at a checkpoint.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.
A candidate for Germany's key party was beaten up while campaigning for European elections
A candidate for Chancellor Olaf Scholz's center-left party in next month's election for the European Parliament was beaten up and seriously injured while campaigning in an eastern city, the party said Saturday.
Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.