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SAN DIEGO (CNS) – San Diego-based Petco Health and Wellness Co.  Inc. announced Wednesday it will provide a one-time $75 payment to each employee who gets fully vaccinated for COVID-19.

For each employee — referred to by the company as “partners” — who gets vaccinated, Petco will also contribute $25 to the Petco Partner Assistance Fund, which provides assistance to employees experiencing financial hardship.

“As part of our mission to improve the lives of pets, pet parents and our Petco partners, we are committed to protecting the health, safety and well-being of our partners, guests and the communities we serve,” said Chairman and CEO Ron Coughlin. “We strongly encourage all of our over 26,000 partners to get vaccinated as soon as they are eligible.”

Any employee already vaccinated will be eligible for the payment, according to the company.

Petco will support scheduling flexibility to accommodate vaccination appointments, and is also exploring potential vaccination clinic offerings, company officials said.

The Petco assistance fund has provided more than $1.3 million in financial support to Petco employees in need since last March.

The company also said it has also paid out a half-dozen COVID-19 “appreciation bonuses” totaling nearly $17 million.

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