Pfizer Korea said Monday that it also would support the vaccination of its employees, following reports last week on Pfizer headquarters’ decision to mandate the Covid-19 vaccination for its employees.

"It is difficult to obligate employees to receive vaccination in the Korean branch, but we are conducting an employee vaccination program for those who wish to receive the vaccine," a Pfizer Korea spokesperson said to Korea Biomedical Review. "Pfizer Korea's employee inoculation program is part of Pfizer’s employee welfare program worldwide for the health and safety of its employees, local communities, and the public."

Pfizer Korea is proceeding with the program through sufficient discussion and cooperation with the government, regulatory agencies, and health authorities.

However, the spokesperson stressed that the vaccines used to inoculate its employees are separately supplied batches. Therefore, they do not affect the amount of vaccines for the general public that the company has decided to supply to the Korean government.

In May, Pfizer Korea decided not to provide the vaccines for its employees, despite the multinational drugmaker’s policy to vaccinate its employees and their immediate families worldwide with its Covid-19 vaccine free of charge. The company expressed concerns about the possible controversy as Korea was struggling with the shortage of Covid-19 vaccines.

Roche Korea experienced such a problem when it provided Tamiflu, an antiviral drug, to its employees during the swine flu outbreak in the past.

Pfizer Korea's new decision comes after Pfizer headquarters on Wednesday last week that it would require all its U.S. employees and contractors to get vaccinated against Covid-19 or participate in regular weekly testing.

"The new initiative will best protect the health and safety of our colleagues and the communities we serve," Pfizer spokesperson Pamela Eisele said in a statement to CNBC.

However, the company said that outside the U.S., it would require their regional employees to adhere to all Covid-19 state, local, and Pfizer safety procedures, although the company strongly encourages all colleagues who can do so in their countries to get vaccinated.

AstraZeneca Korea, another pharmaceutical company that has also developed a Covid-19 vaccine, said it does not have a separate plan for inoculating its employees.

"There are many employees who have not received the vaccine because they are in the age group just starting to get vaccinated," an AstraZeneca Korea spokesperson said. "We do not plan to vaccinate employees separately."

Janssen Korea, another Covid-19 vaccine developer, supplying its vaccine in Korea, also said that is recommending employees vaccinate according to the current government vaccination guidelines.