Senator Risa Hontiveros has urged the recall of an Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Disease (IATF) resolutions directing the mandatory vaccination in workplaces, saying it is not only unacceptable but also violative of existing laws.
She said it is clear from labor laws that it is illegal to hold the salaries of employees without their consent.
“This should not be allowed since a one-day delay in the pay of a laborer would amount to hunger for his or her family,” she said.
The IATF has released Resolution 149, which states that in areas where vaccine supplies are sufficient, establishments and employers in the public and private sector must require their on-site employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
IATF Reso. No. 148-B, on the other hand, provides that workers who are still unvaccinated may not be terminated but will be required to undergo RT-PCR tests regularly at their own expense for purposes of on-site work.
The re-electionist senator said the government, the employers and employee associations should encourage workers to get their jabs instead of punishing them.
“IATF’s resolution defies the DOLE Advisory on the no vaccine, no work policy,” Hontiveros said.
Before coming out with similar resolutions, the senator recommended that IATF should thoroughly study and conduct consultations with the affected sectors first