DOLE: Workers are not required to get vaccinated
Following
a recent “no vaccine, no work” policy
at some establishments, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) made it
clear that vaccination should not be made mandatory for employees.
“We’ll
issue a department order saying it’s not necessary. Employees can choose whether
or not to be immunized,” DOLE Secretary Silvestre Bello explained.
Employers
and establishments who follow the policy will face administrative fines,
according to the Department of Labor.
Employees
of some businesses reported to the Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress
of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) that they were required to get vaccinated before
going to work.
They
will be put on furlough, floating status, or reassigned if they refuse to be
vaccinated),” ALU-TUCP Spokesperson Alan Tanjusay revealed.
This
is a type of abuse and disrespect for workers’ free will and choice, especially
those who aren’t yet ready to be vaccinated),” Tanjusay said.
According
to DOLE, firing an employee for refusing to get the vaccine is considered
illegal suspension or dismissal. On Friday, the department is expected to
release an order allowing workers to choose the kind of vaccine and the date of
vaccination.