On Friday the Victorian Government announced that all authorised workers attending work must have had at least one COVID-19 vaccination dose by 15 October 2021, and must be fully vaccinated by 26 November 2021.
We have written to the major employers in our sector to ask them:
- How will they be verifying the vaccination status of staff, and whether that information will be stored;
- The approach they will take if a person is not able to be vaccinated due to issues with vaccine availability;
- How they will work with staff who are unable to receive a vaccination for health reasons;
- Their approach to staff who choose not to be vaccinated;
- Whether there will be any changes to their COVID-Safe Plan as more staff receive a vaccination.
Employers have an important role in this.
Employers must consult with staff on how these orders will be implemented. No worker should be punished because they cannot access a vaccination. There must be protections for people who have a genuine medical reason to not be vaccinated. As far as possible, your personal medical information must stay private.
Our highest priority is the health and safety of all finance workers.
As COVID-19 case numbers surge, there is increasing pressure on our healthcare workers and greater risk for all frontline workers. The Victorian Chief Health Officer has determined that in order for everyone to go to work safely, all authorised workers need to be vaccinated.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, FSU members have helped our community while putting themselves and their families at risk. Click here to hear those stories.
We now have a step we can all take keep each other safe and protect our families and community.
We will get through this together.
Your Union is here to support you. If you have any questions about the Victorian Government announcements and what they mean for you, you can:
- Call the Member Rights Centre on 1300 366 378 and select option 1; or
- Email mrc@fsunion.org.au.
We encourage all FSU members to receive a COVID-19 vaccination and continue COVID-Safe behaviours.
Your FSU Team