SAN ANTONIO - President Biden's push to have businesses pay for time off so employees can get vaccinated is resonating in San Antonio.
Businesses under 500 employees will be eligible for tax credits for employees who use time to either get a vaccine or recover from the shots.
"It definitely helps us as a business to not have to pay the entire tab," says Alberto Pina, co-founder of Braustin Homes .
Pina's company has 24 employees.
"To make it to where we’re getting a little help where that’s not just coming out of our pockets, definitely it’s helpful as a small business," he says. "It’s good to see the government jumping on board with what was just the right decision for business."
Pina knows it may take a day or two to recover from the after effects of the shot.
"I got vaccinated and that second day is rough," Pina says. "The vaccine, it will go down as one of the modern marvels of the world."
Larger companies, like Frost Bank, USAA and SAWS, have already established vaccine plans for their employees.
"This is something that’s really affecting the economy and its going to take vaccinations and people doing what they need to do to get us out of this and get the economy back going," says Bill Day, senior vice president at Frost Bank. "We're supportive of it."
Frost had already given employees 15 extra days off last year for pandemic-related issues. That policy is being extended to cover Frost staffers getting the vaccine now - as well as any time needed to recover from a shot.
"We understand sometimes its difficult if you’re working an hourly job to take time off to go," Days says. "Employees who need to go get vaccinated, we’re encouraging them to do that. It (the 15 extra days) still applies."
Frost has 2,400 employees in San Antonio.
"We’re doing everything we can to help keep our employees safe, our customers safe, our community safe," Day says.
USAA tells us they also have been giving employees paid time off to get the vaccine.
SAWS arranged for its staffers to get shots on company time too, either at the Alamodome or at the company's headquarters earlier this month.
Another small business we contacted, New Balance on Huebner, tells us "we don't have to pay for it. Insurance covers it."