Coronavirus: Hygiene marshals anger business

South Australian business owners are angry that they must appoint one of their staff as a full-time ‘COVID marshal’.

Adelaide business owner Kim Tanska. Picture: Roy Van Der Vegt

Having spent the past six months reinventing their businesses to make themselves COVID safe, South Australian business owners are angry and confused at the sudden announcement by SA Police that they must appoint one of their staff as a full-time “COVID marshal” to ensure compliance with social distancing and hygiene measures.

In a state with just five active COVID cases and no new cases in almost a week, the move has been denounced as unnecessary nanny-state meddling that adds costs and takes time away from businesses that are already doing the right thing, and already struggling financially.

They fear the new rules could be so strict that even a tiny cafe with two staff would be forced to make one of those workers a marshal, meaning they could not prepare meals or drinks or answer phones lest they be distracted from their marshaling duties.

The employees designated to be the marshal will also be ­required to complete an online course to become accredited.

Adelaide business owner Kim Tanska runs a small 300-member gymnasium called Australian Muscle The Gym in the northern Adelaide suburb of Pooraka. He has just one staff member and fears he will have to hire another at a time when he is already struggling to make ends meet.

“We have already been smashed by this whole thing,” Mr Tanska said. “I had to close for 11 weeks and my cleaning bill has gone up by 1000 per cent as I am already striving to ensure that everything is perfectly safe for our members. I have followed all the rules, all the laws, but being told that we need one new full-time marshal who can’t perform other duties would be the last straw. I can’t ­afford to hire anyone else.”

“I am totally in favour of pulling together to fight the virus and I have supported the lockdown, supported our police and government, but this is just a ridiculous idea. It is a whole new level of bureaucracy, a whole new layer of costs, and it treats us like we are irresponsible when we have been moving heaven and earth to achieve safety for everyone.”

Police Commissioner Grant Stephens defended the changes — effective from August 29 — but said that full details were still being worked through.

He said SAPOL wanted to minimise the impact on businesses but that it was essential that every affected business had a visible marshal to ensure the public did not become complacent.

Commissioner Stephens said he would work with businesses on their concerns and stressed that the marshals were part of a longer-term plan to keep SA COVID-free so that businesses could keep trading and lockdowns avoided.