The ACT Chief Minister will urge businesses to give their staff paid leave to attend COVID-19 vaccine appointments and to support sick leave for employees who have side effects from the jab.
Andrew Barr said he expected every adult in Canberra would be offered the opportunity to get at least one vaccine dose by the end of the year, based on projected supply.
Mr Barr will use his annual State of the Territory address on Monday to call upon Canberra's business leaders to support the territory's vaccine rollout.
"We all have a huge stake in this. Our city's economic recovery is dependent on a successful vaccine rollout," Mr Barr will say.
"Every Canberran that rolls up their sleeve is another small step closer to normality."
The purpose of Mr Barr's annual address is to outline his vision for Canberra's future.
He will tell the crowd of business leaders this year the single biggest priority for the ACT government is to vaccinate as many Canberrans as possible.
"We must, and we are, treating the vaccination rollout as a race. And it's a race the ACT has to win," Mr Barr will say.
"Until this race is over, snap lockdowns and border closures across the country will be a part of our lives.
"I know lockdowns hurt. They hurt local businesses and they hurt families.
"But the alternative hurts much more. We don't have to look far to see how deadly the Delta variant of the virus is."
Business leaders will be encouraged by Mr Barr to share the latest health advice with their staff, including information of how and when they can book their vaccine appointment.
He will also tell business owners to give workers paid time off to book and attend their appointment, and to plan for the possibility that employees may need to take sick leave if they have side effects from the vaccine.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison last Friday confirmed mandatory vaccinations were a matter for employers to decide on, not governments.
Federal, state and territory leaders have agreed a national COVID-19 vaccination target of 80 per cent will be needed for Australia to reopen. But once it has reached 70 per cent this will trigger a gradual reopening.
Mr Barr has previously said the ACT would be able to reach the 70 per cent target by November, after the territory opened up the Pfizer vaccine to people aged 30 to 39.
But the chief minister will provide a more ambitious assessment in Monday's speech.
"At least 70 per cent of eligible Australians need to be fully vaccinated before we can move beyond the current policy responses," Mr Barr will say.
"There's a fair chance that in the ACT, the vaccination rate could reach 80 per cent in the same timeframe.
"The ACT government will keep doing every thing in our power to get as many people vaccinated as quickly as possible, subject to Commonwealth vaccine supply.
"Canberra's vaccination rate is among the highest in the country, with half of all eligible adults having already received their first dose, and over a quarter already fully vaccinated.
"We must maintain this momentum and prepare for an increased supply.
"Based on a projected vaccine supply, we hope every ACT adult has the opportunity to get at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine before the end of this year."
