National cabinet lifts isolation rules for childcare workers, teachers

Isolation rules will be eased for teachers, childcare workers and food supply chain staff to ease the Omicron wave’s impact on the economy, as federal and state leaders work on new testing protocols to manage outbreaks in schools to keep students in classrooms.

Industry groups welcomed the moves but warned that businesses still needed rapid antigen tests to make the protocols work, while an emergency meeting of unions has been called on Monday to discuss workers’ response. Australian Council of Trade Unions Secretary Sally McManus warned the rules put workers under “intolerable pressure” amid rapid antigen test shortages.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said governments were managing a “very delicate balance” between the economy and public health.

“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.”

The Prime Minister announced the relaxation of restrictions for workers in critical industries who are close household contacts of a COVID-19 case, to get more staff back to work and address growing food and workforce shortages.

Under the new rules, workers who are a close contact – defined as living with someone who has COVID-19 – can return to work if they do not have symptoms and return a negative rapid antigen test result.

The industries covered by the change are healthcare and disability support, transport and logistics, childcare and education, food supply and distribution, emergency services including police and prisons, energy, resources and water, waste management, telecommunications and media.

Transport Workers Union secretary Michael Kaine warned the food delivery crisis would “significantly worsen in the coming weeks”, predicting an explosion of cases as the virus spread among workers who did not have access to rapid antigen tests.

“We call on all states and territories to adopt similar requirements to the Victorian government which states all other options must be exhausted before bringing close contacts into the workplace, and that consent must be given from both worker and workplace,” Mr Kaine said.

Credit: Matt Golding

Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Andrew McKellar welcomed the changes to close contact rules, but said that many isolating workers would be unable to return to their jobs “until supply constraints on rapid antigen tests are resolved“.

“The extension of close contact rule changes to employees in the education and childcare sectors is also important to keeping the economy moving,” Mr McKellar said, flagging a push to extend the change to other sectors once a supply of rapid antigen tests was established.

Mr Morrison said national cabinet had “a serious discussion” about the role of surveillance testing with rapid antigen tests in schools and daycare centres at its meeting on Thursday, with details to be agreed upon next week.

“Parents and teachers and those working in schools, teachers’ aides and so on, will be well aware of what the arrangements are before school goes back,” Mr Morrison said.

A Treasury report presented to national cabinet on Thursday warned that Omicron could lock out 10 per cent of the nation’s workforce at the peak of the wave if isolation rules were not loosened and that school closures would remove an additional 5 per cent of workers.

“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,” Mr Morrison said.

“Schools open means shops open. Schools open means hospitals are open. It means aged care facilities are open. It means essential services, groceries are on the shelves ... The health advice is they can go back.”

Queensland and South Australia had “specific medical reasons” for delaying the full reopening of schools by two weeks, he said, concerning the expected peak of the Omicron wave in those states.

Ms McManus blasted Mr Morrison for failing to make rapid antigen tests “free and accessible” for all workers, who were “being asked to risk their health to keep the economy and essential services running”.

“Essential workers are being asked to put themselves in harm’s way to keep food on the shelves, medicines in stock, the lights and water on and keep this country open for business,” she said.

Mr Morrison has resisted calls for government to provide free tests to Australians, and Victorian Premier Dan Andrews said on Thursday that employers should provide tests to their workers.

Labor leader Anthony Albanese said governments should make tests free to “make sure that workers are able to go to work safely by actually getting access to these tests”.

Concession cardholders will be able to access free rapid antigen tests from pharmacists starting on January 24, depending on supply. Cardholders are eligible for 10 tests in total over three months, with a maximum of five a month.

The federal government has allowed international students to increase their work temporarily above the usual limit of 40 hours a fortnight in critical industries.

The Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up here.