Over 400K construction, manufacturing workers to get COVID-19 jabs — DOLE

Over 400,000 workers from the construction and manufacturing sectors will be inoculated starting Tuesday, September 7, 2021 as the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) rolled out a special vaccination program in Manila to help boost employment recovery.

The vaccination rollout is under the DOLE’s “Reform, Rebound, Recover: One Million Jobs for 2021” project.

In a statement, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said the project, a partnership between government and the private sector, aims to provide COVID-19 vaccine jabs to workers of sectors considered as the country's main economic contributors.

Earlier, the National Task Force Against COVID-19 approved DOLE's request for the allocation of vaccines for 452,000 workers in industries identified as critically important for the economy. 

The Labor Department said the request was made to uphold the government's commitments to its private sector partners in the  project.

In the manifesto signed by the DOLE and key National Employment Recovery Strategy (NERS) Task Force-member agencies along with leading business groups led by the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP), the business organizations committed to the creation of one million jobs for 2021.

"That's their show of  support for the Task Force’s efforts to address employment issues caused by the pandemic," Bello said.

"In return, the government through DOLE pledged it will source vaccines for qualified workers before they're onboarded for work," the Labor chief added.

"As envisioned by the NERS Task Force, we are witnessing the whole of society come together for the recovery of jobs and the revival of the labor market,"  he said.

Bello thanked vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. as the latter delivered on his promise to allocate vaccines for workers through this project.

The Labor chief also lauded the government's industry partners for carrying out their commitment to engage workers in need of employment during the pandemic.

"As long as we persevere in our pursuit of safe and unabating recovery, our economy shall surely spring back and our workforce flourish," Bello said. — RSJ, GMA News