Unions are warning that tens of thousands of workers who attend work today will be barred from turning up on Monday under the Berejikilan government's ill-conceived plan to require mandatory vaccinations or rapid testing of all essential workers in LGA hotspots.
The plan has been introduced without appropriate support and risks the livelihoods of 2 in 5 essential workers living in the suburbs most impacted by COVID-19.
Unions NSW said if the NSW state government wants to implement the measures then antigen testing must be made available on Medicare at pharmacies across the state, something national cabinet should approve today.
Unions NSW will support any measure which keeps workers and the wider community safe but will not back policy that has been made on the run with little to no thought given to its practical implementation.
"The best way to proceed with this plan is to make rapid antigen testing available and affordable, through Medicare. Employers do not have this system set up and will not for some time. This should be properly constructed and run," Unions NSW Secretary Mark Morey said
"The current approach of just issuing edicts and hoping for the best belongs in fantasyland.
"These measures lock down our most essential and hardest workers, given the state government has no real plan on how to implement any of them. Workers will pay the price of the government's incompetency."
The permit system only came online at 5pm last night, giving workers a narrow window to make an application.
"This is simply not acceptable. The essential workers living in the LGAs of concern have done all that has been asked of them throughout this outbreak. All they ask is the state government be more transparent and reasonable with whatever additional requirements are asked of them.
"Giving essential workers a little over 48 hours to get a permit that the state government requires is neither fair nor reasonable.
"It's disgraceful that instead of helping these workers already doing it tough, we have a state government that wishes to impose unrealistic measures upon them." Mr Morey said.
Mark Morey 0425 231 812
