By Cecilia Nasmith
The Port Hope and District Chamber of Commerce has announced it is on-board with the Faster Together campaign, joining dozens of organizations, businesses, labour unions, individuals and members of the industrial and educational sectors supporting the national volunteer-driven campaign to encourage the uptake of COVID-19 vaccinations.
The idea is that getting vaccinated can bring us together faster, Chief Executive Officer Brenda Whitehead said, sharing the Faster Together press release.
“This is how we get our lives and businesses back to normal, and the business community is eager to help assure Canadians that vaccines are safe and effective,” Canadian Chamber of Commerce President and Chief Executive Officer Perrin Beatty stated in the announcement.
The volunteer task group is co-chaired by Bruce Anderson (of Abacus Data and spark* advocacy) and Hassan Yussuff (President of the Canadian Labour Congress), and they welcome any organization or individual who wants to help use the creative materials the campaign will make available to reach people and encourage vaccinations.
The latest research from Abacus Data shows that 21% of Canadians have some hesitancy about getting a COVID-19 vaccination. This is the principal target for the messages Faster Together is putting into a free-to-use digital warehouse. spark* advocacy has donated the creative and production time for the campaign, and Abacus has donated the research behind it.
The project benefited also benefited early on from encouragement and counsel that came from the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association, the Canadian Bankers Association and BIOTECanada, as well as a number of officials in the public sector who are deeply involved in these matters.
“Innovative initiatives like Faster Together bring organizations together to help encourage Canadians to get vaccinated when it's their turn, protecting themselves and their communities, and helping us get back together faster,” Minister of Health Patty Hajdu said in the press release.
Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade Mary Ng praised the work of Faster Together in encouraging more Canadians to get vaccinated.
“Every action we can take to protect ourselves and fight this pandemic brings us closer to seeing our friends and family, and fully reopening our economy,” Ng said.
“Small businesses are doing their part to flatten the curve and keep their employees safe through workplace-safety and rapid-screening methods, but it will take all Canadians working together to ensure we reopen and stay open.
“Let's get this done, so we can build back faster and better.”
Anderson and Yussuff welcome anyone who wants to be part of this volunteer effort.
“It's easy and makes a difference,” Anderson stated.
