The National Cabinet has agreed that close contacts working in key industries will not have to be isolated if they return a negative COVID rapid test and do not have symptoms.
Desperate plan announced by Scott Morrison Australia’s depth on Thursday was hatched to resolve the supply chain The crisis that has seen businesses struggle to find employees has left many supermarket shelves bare as COVID cases skyrocketed.
The new rules apply to anyone in the food supply sector as well as those in the transportation, freight and logistics industries whose roles are deemed important.
The system covers employees from the energy, resources, water, waste management, telecommunications, broadcast and media sectors, as well as teachers, childcare workers and emergency services personnel.
But critics say the looser rules are likely to lead to even more positive cases, exacerbating supply chain shortfalls, as rapid tests notoriously don’t pick up someone’s infection for several days – meaning they test negative. can, but can still be contagious.
It comes as the prime minister slammed the so-called ‘Omicron parties’ where some Australians deliberately getting to catch the virus the wrong way would make them ‘immune’.
Scott Morrison announced that the National Cabinet has agreed close contacts who work in a set of key industries will not be isolated if they return a negative COVID rapid test.
Australia recorded a staggering 150,000 COVID cases on Thursday, deepening the country’s supply chain crisis (pictured, a woman has been tested in Sydney)
Australia recorded a staggering 150,000 new Covid cases on Thursday, with back logs of some 60,000 RAT results added to the tally in NSW dating back to 1 January.
Mr Morrison said the issues facing Australia must be resolved The ‘very delicate balance’ between public health and the economy.
“The less restrictions you put on getting people to work, the more pressure your hospital system could potentially put on it, and vice versa,” he said.
‘The more you try to protect your hospital system, the more people you are laying off, disrupting the supply chain.’
Admitting openly, the PM acknowledged that the goal is not to stop everyone in the country from getting COVID, it is to ‘protect our hospitals and keep our society and economy working as we ride this latest wave of omicrons’ We do’.
Treasury Secretary Steven Kennedy outlined that around 10 percent of Australia’s workforce is currently out of work due to isolation requirements.
The new rules apply to everyone who works in the food supply sector as well as the transport, freight and logistics industries (pictured, a worker in Brisbane)
Covid isolation requirements have seen 10 per cent of Australia’s workforce off work, causing a strain everywhere from supermarkets to petrol stations (pictured, a petrol station in central Sydney).
Mr Morrison said the problem was likely to get worse if the start of the school year is delayed to the end of the month – as Queensland and South Australia have decided to do.
“If schools don’t open, it could add an additional five percent absenteeism to the workforce,” the prime minister said.
‘For schools to go back safely and stay open safely is absolutely essential if we are not going to see more of the workforce challenges we currently face.
‘We had a serious discussion about that today, and consulted the medical expert panel. We will confirm our views on that during the next week.’
While the changes have been well received by the affected industries, labor leader Anthony Albanese said he worries expert medical advice is not being followed.
“We need to take that advice because where medical advice is ignored, or short-circuited, the end economic consequences are more dire than following medical advice,” Mr Albanese said.
‘The people who work have made incredible sacrifices and stepped up. They did their share of the bargain, the federal government did not do its share.’
While the changes have been well received by the affected industries, labor leader Anthony Albanese said he was concerned that expert medical advice was not being followed (pictured, a supermarket worker in Brisbane)
The prime minister also addressed the bizarre incident at Omicron parties, where some Australians deliberately expose themselves to the virus.
He said, ‘All this nonsense about Kovid parties, it is ridiculous.
‘If you think you can go out there and get the virus and eliminate it, it doesn’t work.’
He strongly urged Australians to use ‘common sense’ and follow Public health measures prescribed by state and federal governments.
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