Covid isolation rules for a raft of Australian industries are relaxed
National cabinet has agreed that close contacts who work in a raft of key industries will not have to isolate if they return a negative Covid rapid test.
Load Error
The desperate plan announced by Scott Morrison on Thursday was hatched to solve Australia’s supply chain chaos which has seen businesses struggling to find staff many super market shelves left bare as Covid cases skyrocket.
The new rules apply to anyone who works in the food supply sector as well as the transport, freight and logistics industries.
Teachers, childcare workers and emergency services personnel are also included in the arrangement along with workers in the energy, resources, water, waste management, telecommunications, broadcasting and media sectors.
But critics say the relaxed rules are likely to lead to even more positive case amplifying the supply chain crunch.
It comes as the prime minister slammed so called ‘Omicron parties’ where some Australians are getting together to intentionally catch the virus.
© Provided by Daily Mail
© Provided by Daily Mail
Australia recorded a staggering 150,000 new Covid cases on Thursday with a back log some 60,000 RAT results added to the tally in NSW dating back to January 1.
Mr Morrison said a solution to the issues facing Australia must strike a ‘very delicate balance’ between public health and the economy.
‘The less restrictions you put on people to get them to work, the more pressure that could potentially put on your hospital system, and vice-versa,’ he said.
‘The more you try to protect your hospital system, the more people you are taking out of work, which disrupt supply chains.’
He told reporters in a frank admission that the goal is not to stop everyone in the country getting Covid, it’s to ‘protect our hospitals and keep our society and economy functioning as we ride this latest wave of Omicron.’
Treasury Secretary Steven Kennedy outlined that about 10 per cent of the Australia workforce is currently off the job due to the isolation requirements.
© Provided by Daily Mail
© Provided by Daily Mail
Mr Morrison said the problem is likely to get worse if the start of the school year is delayed at the end of the month – as Queensland and South Australia have decided to do.
‘If schools don’t open, that can add an additional five per cent of absenteeism in the workforce,’ the prime minister said.
‘It is absolutely essential for schools to go back safely and remain safely open if we are not going to see any further exacerbation of the workforce challenges we are currently facing.
‘We did have a serious discussion about that today, and the advice from the medical expert panel. We will be confirming our views on that over the course of the next week.
The prime minister also addressed the bizarre phenomenon of Omicron parties, where some Australian intentionally expose themselves to the virus.
‘All this nonsense about Covid parties, it is ridiculous,’ he said.
‘If you think you can go out there and get the virus and get it over with, that is not how this works.’
He strongly urged Australians to use ‘common sense’ and follow the public health measures laid out by state and federal governments.
More to come.
Source: Thanks msn.com