Fears for workers with disability after axing of mandatory COVID-19 isolation periods

The end of mandatory COVID-19 isolation periods has been welcomed by industry groups slogged by workforce shortages, but politicians from across the aisle fear the decision could expose at-risk workers and those living with a disability to infection.

After a meeting of national cabinet on Friday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese declared state and federal authorities agreed to end mandatory isolation for COVID-positive Australians from October 14.

Those infected with COVID-19 will be encouraged to isolate, but will no longer need to remain at home for five days after testing positive to the virus.

In addition, the Pandemic Leave Payment, a lump sum offered to employees unable to work because of their COVID-19 infection, will end for most workers on October 14.

Some workers will be excepted: “Targeted financial support” for casual workers without access to sick leave or annual leave will continue for workers in the aged care, disability care, Aboriginal healthcare, and hospital care sectors, Albanese said in a statement.

The measures were designed to be “effective, proportionate and targeted wherever possible for the most vulnerable and at risk populations”, the statement read.

As hospitalisations due to COVID-19 fall to yearly lows, industry organisations have celebrated the end of mandatory isolation periods keeping employees from the workplace.

Ending those five-day periods while maintaining paid leave entitlements for some workers “will balance the relaxation of restrictions while also protecting the most vulnerable”, said Andrew McKellar, CEO of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

McKellar called on employers to remain vigilant to the risks of COVID-19 in the workplace, but heralded the decision as a win for the business community.

“While caution is still warranted, national cabinet’s decision is a positive sign that life is returning to normal,” he said.

The call reflects the Australian Retail Association’s position that COVID-19 should “be treated just like any other virus and that people should be responsible for their own health”, said CEO Paul Zahra.

“If you’re sick, stay at home, but if you’re well, you should be free to go about your business.”

However, parliamentarians have criticised the decision for the ways it could expose individuals with heightened health risks to COVID-19 exposure in the workplace.

Responding to the announcement, Greens Senator Jordon Steele-John, the party’s spokesperson for disability rights and services, said “I know this decision will make many of you as anxious as it has made me”.

Serious illness due to COVID-19 poses significant harms to Australians living with chronic illnesses and weakened immune systems.

As such, “The concept of ‘living with Covid’ is rife with privilege & ableism: for many of us, living with Covid means dying with Covid,” Steele-John wrote on social media.

Giving folks license to move around the community while infectious & unmasked will be a death sentence for many, and give many more no choice but to further isolate from the world. Please: stay home if you’re sick and mask up if you can. Take care of yourself, and each other 💚

— Senator Jordon Steele-John (@SenatorJordon) September 30, 2022

Monique Ryan, the independent member for Kooyong and medical practitioner, said the decision will all-but certainly force sick individuals back into the office, shopfront, or warehouse floor, potentially exposing others to infection.

“The reality is that without mandatory isolation, many people will return to work while they are sick and infectious with COVID-19, either because employers force their staff to attend work or because workers are unable to take sick leave,” she said.

The health advice on which national cabinet made its decision should be made public, she added.

The call to usher staff back into the workplace while they may still be infectious with COVID-19 comes as the government attempts to level other barriers keeping Australians with a disability from entering the workforce.

At its landmark Jobs and Skills Summit, lawmakers and business advocates alike called on employers and government bodies to increase accessibility and support for those with disabilities.

Jobs and Skills Summit speaker and Australian of the Year Dylan Alcott told attendees that harnessing the skills of Australians with a disability would not only benefit jobseekers, but help to accelerate the nation’s prosperity.

But only 54% of Australians with a disability are currently employed, data shows.

Now, improving labour force outcomes for Australians with a disability is a key theme of the government’s lauded White Paper, a document intended to reshape productivity and industry efficiency.

Public consultations on that paper are now open, and close November 30, six weeks after mandatory COVID-19 isolation periods come to an end.