Presidential aspirant Leody De Guzman on Thursday opposed the recent Inter-Agency Task Force resolution mandating COVID-19 vaccination for onsite workers.
In a statement, the labor leader said although IATF Resolution 148-B states that non-vaccination cannot be a sole ground for termination, it compels unvaccinated or partially vaccinated workers to undergo a regular RT-PCR test at their own expense.
De Guzman said the IATF’s policy is “tantamount to economic coercion,” saying that ordinary workers cannot afford the cost of the regular swab test.
IATF Resolution 148-B states that “in areas where there are sufficient supplies of COVID-19 vaccines as determined by the National Vaccines Operation Center (NVOC), all establishments and employers in the public and private sector shall require their eligible employees who are tasked to do on-site work to be vaccinated against COVID-19.”
“Workers are being punished and blamed for the administration’s failed pandemic response. Government should rather help them recover from the health and jobs crises instead of threatening them with hunger and unemployment to compel them to get vaccinated,” he said.
“The only means that this unthinking regime knows how ordinary citizens will comply with its laws and programs is through brute force and threats. This mindset is shared by DILG Sec. Eduardo Año, who said that the government should put pressure on the people instead of imposing a law that would make vaccination mandatory,” De Guzman added.
He said the government should give incentives instead of coercing Filipinos to get inoculated.
“Incentives, not coercion. Filipinos are not hard headed. We will willfully support any law or program as long as they see the science and reason behind it,” he added.
De Guzman pushed for a massive educational campaign on the vaccination drive and urged the government to conduct free mass testing and aggressive contact tracing.
He also suggested paid vaccination leaves and cash incentives to encourage workers to get inoculated.
Further, he said the IATF resolution is prone to abuse of employers and “can be weaponized” against workers.
The House labor and employment committee earlier said it will request the IATF to suspend the implementation of two resolutions regarding the mandatory vaccination in workplaces.