Employees who will be vaccinated against COVID-19 starting December 1 should be excused from work and should not be marked as absent, a Palace official said on Saturday.

In a radio interview, Acting Presidential Spokesperson Karlo Nograles said this was included in the resolution issued by the Inter Agency Task Force (IATF) for the national vaccination.

"Starting December 1 and onwards our resolution states that the employees who want to get vaccinated or already have a schedule of their vaccination on that day, should be excused by their employer," he said.

"Not only (December) 15, 16, 17, starting December 1 onwards the employers should allow their employees to get their vaccination and excuse them from work," he added.

Nograles said because of the challenges experienced by the government during the first three days of the national vaccination, President Rodrigo Duterte directed the government officials to make sure all those who will walk into the vaccination sites without prior schedule or registration should also be vaccinated.

"The improvements include the accommodation of walk-ins. But to the process, it’s really up to the LGUs and then on how they will do the process, we are just asking them to also have a system for walk-ins," he said.

"As long as we still have the vaccine and there are people who want to get vaccinated we should finish it. That is the directive of our president, he said as long as there are people waiting in the line do not close the vaccination site," he added.

Nograles said the government is also encouraging the public to accept whatever brands of vaccine available in their area due to the so-called "brand preference".

"Although there are isolated cases we still have to monitor those who have ‘brand preference’, this is why we have to continue to remind them that we should not have brand preference, whatever is available there, all of our vaccines are safe and effective for all," he said. Robina Asido/DMS