During the pandemic, the National Association of Manufacturers has not been shy about expressing its views on what needs to be done to fight the disease.
The group, along with its workforce development arm, The Manufacturing Institute, is again calling for action to beat this pandemic by encouraging people to get the vaccine. In a statement announcing its latest efforts, NAM said that it needs to take “ direct aim at vaccine hesitancy and stopping the virus in its tracks by convincing more Americans to prepare to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.”
Citing the frightening global milestone of 100 million COVID-19 cases, on January 27 NAM announced a project called “This Is Our Shot.”
“The NAM is doing its part to get the message out there that we ALL need to get vaccinated (and keep wearing masks and social distancing) to protect our loved ones and our country,” NAM CEO Jay Timmons told IndustrIndustryWeek. “Today we released a new ad, which we call “I Love Frank.” The ad expresses why manufacturing teams are ready and willing to roll up their sleeves: to protect the ones we love, including our coworkers, our families and our communities.”
This is Our Shot includes six main components:
- science-based messaging research;
- emergency industry convening and education, such as webinars;
- an online vaccine information hub;
- a PSA campaign;
- a Yellow and Red Ribbon initiative (for vaccinated individuals to show their peers they’re a part of the fight);
- and a rapid response media and digital campaign.
As manufacturing has been deemed an essential industry during the pandemic, Timmons feels that this sector has a unique responsibility to be active in stopping the disease. “With another grave milestone breached and the virus mutating, the country’s response and recovery is depending on manufacturing workers more than ever. Our future depends on all of us rolling up our sleeves and getting armed against COVID-19,” he said in a statement.