TUCP to DOLE: Probe ‘no jab, no pay’ scheme

MANILA, Philippines, October 18 ------ Some employers are unlawfully withholding the salary of their employees until they can prove that they have already been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, a major labor organization claimed on Sunday. “We strongly condemn as inhuman and illegal the ‘no vaccine, no salary’ scheme imposed by employers on their unvaccinated employees,” said the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP).

The TUCP noted that several workers from different establishments have reported that they were not paid their salaries because their supervisors required them to first present their vaccination cards. It said the affected workers were afraid to be identified and complain because they might get fired, and instead asked the TUCP to intervene on their behalf. “The TUCP strongly condemns workplace arm-twisting being done by these employers. This is clearly an act of reprehensible discrimination and harassment imposed on helpless workers,” TUCP president and party list Rep. Raymond Mendoza said. “We warn employers that such a scheme to compel workers to get vaccinated is unlawful,” he added.

He said Article 116 of the Labor Code prohibits employers from withholding the wages of their workers “by force, stealth, intimidation, threat, or by any other means whatsoever without the worker’s consent.” He also cited Section 12 of Republic Act No. 11525 or the Act Establishing the Covid-19 Vaccination Program, which became law last February. The provision states that vaccine cards “shall not be considered as an additional mandatory requirement for education, employment and other similar government transaction purposes.”

The TUCP said it would provide the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) with the names of the establishments that enforce the “no vaccine, no salary” scheme, urging the labor department to immediately conduct inspections to protect the workers’ rights. Mendoza also urged the Dole to issue another labor advisory “clearly outlining the fines and imprisonment imposable on employers for withholding the salaries of unvaccinated employees.” “The labor department must act immediately before this practice spreads and becomes a norm,” he warned.

Source: inquirer.net