The PSA has been contacted by members raising concerns about how their work is being managed during the lockdown period.
PSA Takes Action to Protect GAs
The PSA has contacted the Department to raise serious safety concerns with General Assistants’ remaining working on site in the Greater Sydney area, especially in situations where contractors have been scheduled to undertake work during the vacation period.
The Department has responded with the following advice:
All staff in Greater Sydney, including the Blue Mountains, Central Coast and Wollongong, must work from home until further notice. If you believe your work cannot be completed remotely, please discuss this with your Principal for approval before you come into the school.
I’m advised that general assistants who are subject to the stay at home orders and were intending to work during the current school vacation period can still do so subject to them making contact with their principal (or the nominated delegate for the period of the vacation) to confirm their working arrangements.
The PSA advises all General Assistants’ who have not been in contact with their Principal or supervisor about your working arrangements to contact them immediately.
Your safety
The Principal is responsible for the safety of all staff on site. If you have concerns for your health and safety, please raise them immediately with your Principal or supervisor.
If the concerns are not addressed, please lodge an incident with the Incident Report and Support Hotline on 1800 811 523. Keep a record of the incident number and a copy of the report lodged.
Contact the PSA Member Support Centre on 1300 772 679 if no action is taken to address your concerns.
You can read up on these and other information here: https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/alerts/Pages/coronavirus-faqs.aspx
Working From Home
All staff in a school should be prepared to work from home in the event of total lockdown such as the one that has been implemented in Greater Sydney for the next two weeks.
The PSA advises all members who must now work from home to:
- Think about what work you can do from home, this could include online training and upskilling. There may be online courses through WHS, PLNTS or through TAFE that you can undertake while working from home.
- Assess your ability to work from home. Do you have the necessary resources? If not, raise this with your supervisor and discuss with them what options there are for being provided what is required including the technology you might need to work from home.
- Ensure that you have been granted remote access to programs or systems required to undertake your work from home.
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