Further to our last bulletin on the subject, the PSA met with Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) representatives on Wednesday 6 October 2021 to discuss its draft vaccination policy. Following this meeting, the PSA provided feedback in writing on Friday 8  October.  You can view this feedback in full HERE.

The PSA raised a number of concerns with the draft policy.  While you can view them in full at the above link, a summary is below.

Section 5.2 – Medical Contraindication

The PSA raised concerns that there was a section of the draft policy which states:

Where a workplace adjustment is required and cannot be made, consideration may be given to whether the person can continue in employment. Any decision will be made in line with applicable DCJ policies and legislation.

PSA members who have a medical contraindication to receiving a vaccine have no ability to comply with any mandatory vaccination policy. The PSA believes there should be no circumstance in which ending the employment relationship due to this medical inability approved by a registered medical practitioner is an appropriate outcome. All other options should be explored such as working from home, modification of duties, flexible work practices, change of roles at grade and transfer to another role at grade. The PSA believes these options should be articulated in the policy.

Employees are to submit the medical contraindication form to their manager who will review and seek advice from People Business Partners.

Medical Contraindication forms contain health data, and as such there are requirements needed to ensure it is protected from unauthorised access use or disclosure. In line with existing evidence of illness conditions, there needs to be an option provided in the policy for employees to provide the Medical Contraindication Form to the Department’s nominated officer rather than the line manager where employees wish to maintain privacy regarding their condition.

Where there is contention about the medical evidence, advice may be sought from the government medical assessment provider.

If a PSA member has received a medical contraindication certificate from a registered medical practitioner, using a form approved by the Chief Health Officer, there should be little to no contention around the evidence provided. In the rare circumstances that there may be contention, the policy should articulate the steps to be taken before any potential assessment from the government medical assessment provider, such as the employer writing to the medical practitioner to seek further information. This should be specifically contained within the policy.

Section 5.3 Employees who do not comply

The PSA contends that if an employee does not comply with the direction to be vaccinated, however indicates that they are agreeable to going on a period of leave, therefore removing themselves from the active workforce and removing the risk, there should be little basis for the termination of employment whilst that individual is still on their period of leave.

Whilst every individual situation will need to be judged on its individual merits, there are a number of reasons why an employee may not be able to comply with the current direction in place for high-risk areas of DCJ to be vaccinated by 25 October, but are not opposed to complying with any direction in place before their return to the workplace. One reason already raised is the pending arrival of the Novavax vaccine. The Federal Government has indicated on information published on its website, that more than 51 million doses of the Novavax vaccine will be available in late 2021.

Considering the pending arrival of a vaccine that hesitant staff may be agreeable to taking is due from November, the PSA believes any effort to terminate employment for someone who is prepared to use their accumulated leave until such time as the Novavax is available may be premature and unfair. Additionally, as the Department has invested in its employees in regards to training and skills, any premature severing of the employment relationship should be avoided.

NOTE: The PSA encourages members who may be hesitant for the above reason, to still seek information from a registered medical practitioner to discuss the vaccines currently available.

These employees will be required to remain on leave until they are contacted by DCJ with  further instruction.

There needs to be a clearer specification of the timeframes rather than staff waiting until they are contacted by the Department with further instructions. The timeframes must also allow for a proper consideration of the individual circumstances, as well as proper consideration of other options available to the Department such as possible redeployment or alternate duties.

Section 5.4 – Record Keeping

The PSA has major concerns with the storage of and access to health data such as vaccination status or medical contraindication forms.

In particular, the Department currently proposes to store medical contraindication information on the employee’s P file. This raises concerns that the Department would be unable to ensure that this information is protected from unauthorised access, use or disclosure, or that it is only used for the purpose for which it was collected. The PSA is requesting that further consideration is given to the manner in which this information is stored. This includes stating in the policy how the privacy and security of the data collected will be maintained and the policy should also identify who will have access to the information kept by the Department and how it will be used. This section should also include the evidence of vaccinations information, not just the Medical Contraindication Forms.

Additionally, the PSA also sought that further information is included in the policy clarifying that an employee is only required to submit their vaccination status once, and not upon every single entry to a workplace, as our members are reporting is occurring at the moment. This will avoid any unnecessary tension and frustration between staff, particularly at the entry to Youth Justice centres and Correctional centres.

Employees already on leave The PSA provided feedback that the policy should also include the requirements for employees who are currently on parental, extended or other forms of leave.

Booster shots The PSA asked that consideration be given to including information about any further booster shots into the policy, as a number of employees may soon be approaching six months since their second shot.

Review period The PSA sought further information as to when this policy would be reviewed, and sought a commitment to continued consultation on this policy and the associated risk assessments.

Next steps

The PSA will update the membership when a reply is received to our feedback. In the meantime, the PSA encourages our members to seek information from their doctor regarding vaccines available.