INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS
WORKPLACE POLICIES A CONSULTATION PROCESS
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SW is enjoying a beautiful late spring as the COVID-19 lockdowns wind down towards the 15 December deadline, when all people may move freely, and workers will be back in the workplace. For the NSW Building and Construction Industry the end of the lockdowns could not come soon enough. The LGAs of concern and the endlessly complex Public Health Orders will hopefully be just a memory. Now we can get back to what we do best, building the great State of NSW.
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NSW was able to lead the way out of lockdown directly due to an uptake of the vaccines which far exceeded what was predicted. A few short months ago some experts were wringing their hands and hoping the State would reach 60% full vaccination, now we look set to hit the mark somewhere around the 94% mark, perhaps higher! Now the rush back to work is on, there is one issue that is coming into sharp focus which is this; not everyone chose to get vaccinated. This is leading to many difficult discussions
MBA NSW | Issue Four | October-December 2021
in workplaces across the State. The question of vaccinated and unvaccinated workers working together and the effects on staff health and safety and business viability is arousing passions on all sides of the debate. The issue is a tricky one. When it comes to the workplace, the decision about whether to make COVID-19 vaccination mandatory in that workplace is a decision which will usually fall to the employer. Apart from a few occupations in NSW (e.g., aged care, airport workers etc.) vaccination is not a requirement mandated
