Coronavirus: Philippines proposes using WHO-recognised jab certificate for domestic helpers to work in Hong Kong
- Philippine consulate says the certificate, known as a ‘yellow card’, would follow World Health Organization standards
- Employment agencies group chairman Thomas Chan also suggests allowing vaccinated Filipino workers to conduct antibody tests in their home country
Thomas Chan Tung-fung, chairman of the Hong Kong Union of Employment Agencies, said the Philippine consulate raised the proposal in a meeting last week.
Hong Kong officials and the two consulates were also in talks about a system to recognise inoculation records of helpers vaccinated in these countries.
Chan estimated that flight bans on Indonesia and the Philippines – where most Hong Kong’s 370,000 domestic helpers come from – had created a supply shortage, with between 6,000 and 6,500 new hires or those with contracts in the city left stranded in their hometowns.
The Philippine government was examining the possibility of using an internationally recognised vaccination card for domestic helpers to come to the city, Chan said, but added that he understood Hong Kong officials had yet to accept the idea.