The Korean Financial Industry Union and the Finance Industry User Council have agreed that workers who get vaccinated for COVID-19 are entitled to up to three days of paid leave, officials said Sunday.

Under the agreement, which will take effect Monday, employees of 22 financial institutions registered with the Korea Federation of Banks -- a body that represents commercial banks -- will receive two days off work, the day of the vaccination and the day after. 

Those who show signs of adverse effects after the shot can take one more
day off without a doctor’s note, according to the labor union.

Currently, only the country’s major banks, including KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, Woori and NH NongHyup, as well as internet-only lender KakaoBank, have their own vaccination leave programs. 

Last month the country’s Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters recommended that private companies in all industries offer vaccination leave to support the inoculation drive against COVID-19. 

The government aims to inoculate at least 13 million people, or a quarter of the country’s population, by the end of this month and to create herd immunity by November.  

By Choi Jae-hee (cjh@heraldcorp.com)