Covid19: Unions Say Vaccination Is Not Mandatory as Thulas Nxesi Publishes New Rules
- South African workers' unions have warned employers not to force workers who do not want to take the Covid-19 vaccines to get them
- Cosatu issued the warning after videos of purported side effects of the vaccines went viral on social media across the globe
- Mzansi Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi has reportedly published a new directive focusing on Covid-19 rules in the workplace
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Mzansi workers' unions have vowed to challenge employers who vaccinate their workers without their consent in court. Cosatu warned employers to victimise employees who don't want to take shots at their own peril.
Source: Twitter
The union's national spokesperson Sizwe Pamla reportedly warned employees amid viral videos of purported side effects of the vaccines. Pamla said any attempts by companies to fire workers who refuse to be vaccinated against the deadly virus will be challenged at the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) and Labour Courts.
"Administering vaccines, like all medications, is based on consent. No worker can be forced to vaccinate," said Pamla, according to IOL.
Pamla added that Cosatu is urging all workers to register for and receive their vaccines. Business Tech reports that Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi has published a new directive focusing on Covid-19 and the workplace. The regulations outline the health and safety protocols that businesses and employees are required to follow during the lockdown.
The new rules also deal with the issue of vaccinations and whether an employer can make them mandatory. It gives an employer 21 days to make a decision on whether it intends to make vaccination mandatory, the publication said.
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Faster production of Covid-19 vaccines
In other news, Briefly News reported that Aspen, the producers of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, have promised President Cyril Ramaphosa that they will be making provision for faster production of the vaccine.
Their promise to "beef up" production comes as the country faces a rise in Covid-19 cases and a shortage of Covid-19 vaccines. Ramaphosa earlier announced that two million vaccines would be pulled over fears of contamination that occurred in a US production site.
The announcement came after health experts called on the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority to verify whether the vaccines were okay for use, News24 reports.
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Source: Briefly News
