Hello and welcome to this On Demand HR update and today we are going to be discussing some changes regarding vaccination mandates and isolation for NSW residents and business, as well as unpacking some of the potential HR & Workplace Relations implications. 

On 20 April 2022, the NSW health minister Brad Hazzard issued a media release titled “Update On Covid Settings”.  There were two critical changes for NSW that come into effect from 6pm Friday 22 April 2022. 

Firstly, there will no longer be a requirement for asymptomatic household contacts to undertake the mandatory 7 day isolation period subject to a few additional restrictions of movement including: 

• Not visiting aged care, hospitals & correctional facilities; 
• Wearing a face mask indoors when not at home; 
• Undertake daily Rapid Antigen Testing; and 
• Notify their employer that they are a close contact and that they are not required to isolate providing the meet with the conditions that we just covered. 

This is welcome news for employers in certain industries who have been experiencing staff shortages as a result of the previous isolation requirements.  It also solves the challenge of extended periods of isolation as a single positive Covid case in a household moves from person to person, effectively resetting the 7 day isolation period and causing havoc for workplaces. 

Some businesses throughout the Covid period have intentionally overstaffed their workforce to provide cover and continuity of trade throughout the Covid period.  It remains to be seen if this relaxing of restrictions will trigger any reductions in staffing levels, although the unemployment rate and general war for talent, may lead employers to keep all of their current staff.

The second major change announced by Mr Hazzard was the abolishing of vaccination mandates for almost all industries. This seems to follow the lead of the recent NZ High Court decision, recent comments by the QLD Human Rights Commissioner, but also the relaxing of mandates in South Australia. We have discussed some of these matters in other videos, and it is no surprise this is where we are today.  

The only remaining industries remaining covered by State based mandatory vaccination orders are Aged & Disability Care. This means that teachers, nurses, doctors, police, childcare workers, defense force workers, amongst others, are no longer required to be vaccinated. 

Of course there may be some businesses who continue their own policies above the NSW health orders, however the effectiveness of such policies will certainly need to be reconsidered in the context of approximately 5 million cases in Australia, after the vaccination targets were met late last year. The recent announcements from the NSW government seem to be an indicator that vaccination policies are no longer required for workplaces, and in the broader economy.