The Australian Industry Group has called on the Victorian Government to reconsider its position on workers returning to offices and the need for them to continue to wear masks.
The Victorian Head of the national employer association Ai Group, Tim Piper, said that with the return of tourists to Australia, the State Government should also be allowing businesses to return to a more normal setting.
"Businesses are continuing to unnecessarily suffer because workers are not in their offices and they don't want to attend offices while wearing masks.
"And it's not just CBD workers that must be encouraged to go into the office. It's also those working in offices in the suburbs and the regions who must be encouraged to return to a more normal working environment.
"We have no doubt there will be a hybrid style of work for many people into the future. But that must be a negotiated position between employees and employers, not one that is artificially created and imposed by the government.
"It is time to start reconsidering the best way to get people back into the office and to do it quickly.
"I am receiving calls daily from very senior business people expressing great concern at their inability to get people back into the office, to improve efficiencies and to create a more business as usual approach. It's an environment that must be changed and now is the opportunity for the Government to note and act on the concerns of business," Mr Piper said.
