It adds to growing pressure on employers to implement WFH amid rising COVID cases
Employers across Australia should make sure that workers who can work from home can do so, according to the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU), as COVID-19 cases spike anew.
According to ACTU president Michele O'Neil, it is "imperative that all employers" support the healthcare system and workers, who are already dealing with "unacceptable" level of pressure.
"The biggest COVID wave of the pandemic so far is about to hit and it's imperative that employers adhere to their legal obligations to protect their workers' health and safety by ensuring that all workers who can work from home do so, and those who cannot have masks and social distancing arrangements in place," said O'Neil in a statement.
In addition, O'Neil also called on employers to provide employees free rapid antigen tests and leave at full pay when they need to leave.
"No worker should have to decide between putting food on the table or isolating with COVID. Employers must support workers by providing free RATs and providing leave at full pay when workers have to isolate," said the ACTU president.
"Australia's entire healthcare system will be compromised unless COVID cases are controlled by all employers stepping up and supporting the health and safety of their workers."
ACTU's call came after employers were urged by Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Paul Kelly to review the possibility of remote work for employees as cases spike in Australia.
"The Australian Health Protection Principal Committee has reiterated its advice on reinfection periods, testing and isolation, mask wearing, vaccine boosters and treatments, and called on employers to allow work from home if feasible," said the CMO.
"Employers should review their occupational health and safety risks and mitigations, and their business continuity plans," he added. "They should consider the feasibility of some employees working from home, wearing masks in the workplace and support employees to take leave when sick."
He cited the increase of cases to the circulating BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants of the COVID-19 Omicron strain, adding that based on other countries' experiences, infections will likely continue to rise over the coming month.
"We cannot stop this wave of infections, but we can slow the spread and protect the vulnerable. We have done this before and we can do it again," said Kelly.
Telecommunications company Telstra has updated its guidelines to abide by the CMO's advice, The Guardian reported, while financial services firm Westpac has updated its rules even before the recommendation from Kelly.
And for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, the decision of remote work will be up to the business, who need to make them on the "basis of safety."
"Businesses will continue to make those decisions. They need to make them on the basis of safety, but also for some people we need to recognise that they can't work from home," said the prime minister.
"Of course, we need to recognise there's a consequence for as well. If you're a business that relies upon people coming into the CBD to shop, in retail or hospitality, then your business can be hurt by that as well. So, it's a matter of getting the balance right. I'm confident that with a bit of common sense applied we can do that."
