Can I Make Employees Get Vaccinated?

That appears to be the question of the day. We are getting asked this often. The question is always accompanied by – my client won’t let us on site unless we are vaccinated, my customers are saying they won’t use us unless we are fully vaccinated, the newspaper reports that The Warehouse is proposing compulsory vaccination.

The answer is very complicated. COVID-19 is challenging enough from a health and safety perspective, but many of the issues need to be managed under HR. The health and safety decisions employers make now may have massive repercussions under HR legislation.

WorkSafe New Zealand have released advice on “How to decide what work requires a vaccinated employee”. This is for work that is not covered under the COVID-19 Public Health Response Orders.

The main points from this guidance are:

• Undertake a risk assessment to identify if an employee should be vaccinated for work health and safety purposes, where the nature of the work itself raises the risk of Covid-19 infection and transmission above the risk faced outside work

• Follow Employment New Zealand guidance

• Focus on the role, not the individual

• Complete the risk assessment with employees and their representatives

  
  

WorkSafe NZ have developed the following to assist with the assessment:

1. Risk factors to consider

   

2. Consider other controls

   Identify any further infectious disease controls you and your employees could implement. The Ministry of Health has provided detailed information.

   Examples of other controls include:

   - Limiting access to the site – restricting numbers, staggering shifts, visits, etc.

   - Contactless service

   - Use of the Covid-19 QR scanning or other registration of people’s presence

   - Wearing face coverings

   - Using gloves

   - Sanitiser or hand washing

   - Regular cleaning of the environment, especially the common touch points

   
   

3. Assess the results

Assess the results of your risk factor discussion and the impact of any extra controls you will implement.

If your risk ratings tend towards higher risk and you are not able to reduce that risk by implementing more controls, you and your employees should consider whether the work should be performed by a vaccinated employee.

If the risk is low and shows that transmission is not higher than the risk from outside work, you may decide not to require the role to be undertaken by a vaccinated employee.

You should still encourage your employees to get vaccinated. You can do this by encouraging discussion, providing access to legitimate information, allowing employees time off to be vaccinated and recognising that some people may have reactions and need time off, etc.