Philippines concerned over HK plan for mandatory vaccination of domestic workers

The Philippine Consulate is now in coordination with the Hong Kong government regarding a plan for the mandatory vaccination of domestic workers in the special region. Philippine Consul General Raly Tejada said that mandatory vaccination should not be made a requirement for a working visa or the renewal of contracts, as reported on GMA's "24 Oras Weekend" on Sunday. For its part, the Hong Kong Labor and Welfare Bureau said it is now studying the mechanism for the mandatory vaccination program. Hundreds of overseas Filipino workers over the weekend queued to take part in the mandatory COVID-19 testing for domestic workers in Hong Kong. The mandatory testing comes after two Filipinos tested positive for mutations of the coronavirus disease 2019. Earlier this year, the Hong Kong Center for Health Protection said a passenger from the Philippines tested positive for the U.K. variant of COVID-19. The Philippines on Sunday reported 8,346 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 to bring the tally to 1,054,983. This includes 71,472 active cases, 966,080 recoveries, and 17,431 deaths. — Jon Viktor D. Cabuenas/BM, GMA News

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