- As workers render essential services, they are exempt from the “No Vaccination, No Ride” policy, according to the labor and transport departments
- The clarification was made on the second day of implementation of a recent Department of Transportation order prohibiting the unvaccinated from taking public transportation
- DOTr said an employee of an industry allowed to operate under Alert Level 3 can still board public transport, even if unvaccinated, provided he/she can present proof that he/she is going to work
Workers are exempted from the “No Vaccination, No Ride” policy, the Departments of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and Transportation (DOTr) clarified.
“Exempted po ang mga workers natin [Workers are exempted] because they are rendering essential services. ‘Pag hininto mo mga ‘yan, paano gagalaw ang ating mga negosyo? ‘Pag walang negosyo, walang ekonomiya. [If you stop them, how will business continue? No business, no economy.] So luckily, exempted ang ating mga workers,” Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said in a virtual briefing on January 18.
“Kailangan lang sigurong [We just need] mass information drive to inform not only the public, but especially the enforcing agencies—mga pulis, taga-DOTr [police, DOTr enforcers]. Alam nila dapat [They should know] that workers are exempted from this ‘no vax, no ride policy’,” Bello added.
Asked about Bello’s statement, DOTr said an employee of an industry allowed to operate under Alert Level 3 can still board public transport, even if unvaccinated, provided the person can present proof that he/she is going to work, such as a company ID or a Certificate of Employment (COE).
DOTr said employees going to work must show their vaccination card, or if unvaccinated or without a vaccination card, “must show that your work is an ‘essential work’” under the guidelines of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases.
The clarification comes on the second day of implementation of the controversial policy contained in DOTr Department Order (DO) No. 2022-001, which limits public transportation access to vaccinated individuals in the National Capital Region (NCR) under Alert Level 3 status or higher.
Issued on January 11, DOTr DO 2022-001 aims to restrict the movement of unvaccinated individuals in Metro Manila following an uptick in COVID-19 cases with the spread of the highly infectious Omicron variant.
DOTr DO 2022-001 applies to all domestic travel to, from, and within NCR via public transportation by land, air, and sea while the area is placed under Alert Level 3 status or higher.
Operators of public transportation were earlier ordered to allow access only to fully vaccinated persons travelling to and from any areas within NCR.
DO 2022-001 states that a person is considered fully vaccinated against COVID-19 two weeks after receiving the second dose in a two-dose vaccination series, such as with the Pfizer or Moderna brand of vaccines, or two weeks after a single-dose vaccine such as with Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen vaccine.
Exempted from the policy are the following:
- Persons with medical conditions as evidenced by a duly signed medical certificate with name and contact details of the physician; and
- Persons who will procure essential goods and services, such as, but not limited to food, water, medical devices, public utilities, energy, work and medical and dental necessities as evidenced by a duly issued barangay health pass and other appropriate proof to support and justify such travel
DOTr in a separate statement clarified that individuals who have received only the first dose but are out to do essential activities such as, among others, go to work, have a medical examination, apply for license or passport, or buy food and other necessary goods, are exempted from the policy.
“We apologize for any inconvenience this may bring to some of our fellow kababayans [citizens], but let us be very clear—we in government have a mandate to faithfully execute and deliver, and that is to duly uphold public safety,” DOTr said.
