26 February | COVID-19 Vaccinations & the Workplace
With the Australian Government’s COVID-19 Vaccines National Rollout Strategy commencing in states and territories, the relationship between an employer’s obligations to provide for safe working environments and individual autonomy with respect to health decisions has been front of mind for businesses and employees alike.
The onset of COVID-19 has brought about many changes to the industrial relations landscape in Australia, from the historic JobSeeker and JobKeeper schemes to temporary reforms to the Fair Work Act. As the rollout builds in momentum, workplaces will continue to grapple with discharging their duty under the model Work Health and Safety laws to eliminate, or if not possible, minimize the risk of exposure to COVID-19 in the workplace - to the extent that it is practical.
Which begs the question, to what extent is it practical to mandate vaccinations in a workplace? The Australian Health Protection Principal Committee has not recommended that the vaccine be made mandatory, and in all states and territories vaccination against the disease remains to be a voluntary and ultimately an individual decision.
The Fair Work Ombudsman and Safe Work Australia Guidance
The Fair Work Ombudsman and Safe Work Australia have provided guidance on whether the COVID-19 vaccine can be considered to be a ‘reasonably practicable control measure’ for the purposes of the model Work Health and Safety laws. The overarching view is that it is unlikely that the majority of employers can impose a requirement that employees receive the COVID-19 vaccination, notwithstanding their broad safe work obligations.
Safe Work Australia has issued guidelines that encourage employers to consider the particular circumstances of a given workplace, including the current COVID-19 risk assessments, when making decisions about the vaccine. Employers have also been directed to consider their responsibilities under anti-discrimination laws and worker protections provided for in the Fair Work Act when approaching the question of a vaccination requirement.
Alongside the national Rollout Strategy, the Australian Vaccination and Treatment Strategy provides scope for health agencies to make public health orders that impose a vaccination requirement onto some workers, such as those in high risk workplaces. Whilst no such order has been made at this stage of the rollout, these affordances highlight the necessity of ongoing monitoring of workplace policies and practices.
For more information, please contact Sarah McKenzie, Head of Regulatory + Commercial Affairs.
T: +61 2 9223 0311
E: sm@premiernational.com.au