Ever since the government announced the new covid 19 vaccines, we became anxious and hesitant whether we will receive the vaccine or not. Deciding is not easy especially we have been exposed to several cases regarding the side effects of these vaccines to those who are already vaccinated.
It was never MANDATORY, at the start. The government told us that we are not forced or required to get the vaccine. But as the days goes by, their plans suddenly went against the first promise. They stated that we have the freedom to choose whether to receive it or not, but how come that there are establishments and offices requiring their employees to show their vaccination cards and certificates? Whether we see it from the front or back, the real ending is that we need to be vaccinated whether we like it or not. The people were left with no choice. Jobs matters than life. We are still going to be vaccinated at the end.
For once, they told us that they only need atleast 75% of the total municipality population to be vaccinated, but today, December 1, 2021, the government have published another resolutions regarding the vaccination process and those who need to vaccinated.
In a resolution issued by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID) upon the directives of President Rodrigo R. Duterte “for a whole-of-government solution to increase the demand for COVID-19 vaccination, regardless of brand, for a healthier and resilient Philippines,” the vaccination of all employees in the public and private sectors is hereby made MANDATORY. This resolution shall be enforced effective December 1, 2021.
In view hereof, all unvaccinated employees are formally advised that, unless you can provide us proof of your vaccination, you shall not be allowed to report for work and entry into the branch beginning on the effective date mentioned above. You can only return to work upon presentation of a negative RT-PCR result. Moreover, if you remain unvaccinated, you will henceforth be required to submit a negative RT-PCR result every two (2) weeks. If you fail to meet this requirement, you will not be allowed again to report for work.
Partially vaccinated employees, whose schedule for the second dose of their vaccine has already lapsed, are likewise required to undergo and submit a negative RT-PCR test result every two (2) weeks until you achieve a full vaccination status.
During your absence because of your failure to submit proof of vaccination and/or a negative RT-PCR result, such absences will be automatically charged to your remaining sick leave credits. In the event that sick leaves are no longer available, the company may apply your available vacation leaves. In case that neither SL nor VL is available, the no-work no-pay rule shall apply.
Furthermore, to give ample time for unvaccinated employees to secure a negative RT-PCR result, the mandatory submission of this requirement will be enforced effective December 4, 2021. To simplify this directive, unvaccinated employees who will fail to submit a negative RT-PCR result shall not be allowed to report to work starting December 4.
For your reference and for further details on the resolution mandating full vaccination of onsite workers, you may visit the IATF website (doh.gov.ph/COVID-19/IATF-Resolutions) and read up on IATF Resolutions 148-B and 149.
FOR YOUR INFORMATION AND STRICT COMPLIANCE
So, where is the freedom now? They might emphasize that only those employees of private and public offices are mandated to get the vaccine, for sure, sooner or later, they will require everyone to be vaccinated.
If you are not yet informed, there are already on-going vaccinations on children ages 12-17 years old and the vaccine used is Pfizer. Vaccines are now available for minors but the fear of sudden side effects were still in peak of confusion and discussion.
Before I end this article, I wanted to share you some stories about getting these vaccine.
I have this one friend that has a Rheumatic Heart Disease and have been injected medicine for almost 10 years. She stopped her medication 4 years ago, praying that she was already healed. It was strongly claimed that those who have medical conditions must seek first their doctors and ask assurance whether it is safe to get vaccinated or not. My friend went to her doctor and was told not to get the vaccine, or if she's already feeling okay, she can take the Sinovac because of its mild side effects. But still, she was advised not to take the vaccine.
What she was worrying is that, if she did not get the vaccine, she might not be allowed to enroll next semester since the university is planning to conduct limited face to face but only for those who are vaccinated. She was still worried even though she was told to just bring the medical certificate.
Now, my point is, do we really need to sacrifice our life for the sake of compliance on this resolution? What's the point of joining the trend when you know your days are already counted?
