SVG: Unvaccinated teachers can seek re-employment with government
There is new information for frontline workers in St Vincent and the Grenadines who became unemployed last year after they did not adhere to the government's COVID-19 vaccination requirement to remain on the job.
Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves says a decision took place yesterday in Cabinet after he received recommendations from the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) concerning an amended regime for frontline workers - persons in health, teachers, specific categories of public servants, immigration and customs, and those at the airport.
An agreement was reached on the following new regime. For healthcare workers, there will remain, and any new person entering will have to be fully vaccinated and boosted.
He said there is a principle called a layered approach where the police, the port authority and relevant public servants defined in the regulations, for employment, the vaccine will not be the requirement. It will have masks, sanitisation, ventilation and spacing, as well as a vaccine advocacy programme to encourage people still to take the vaccine.
For teachers and other adult staff in learning institutions, there must be strict adherence to the following measures- unvaccinated teachers and other adult staff- 100 per cent masks, spacing between cohorts, strict cohorting (if you all are in the same space, you stick together), proper ventilation, screening and a testing regime to stay on the job.
He said in this layered approach, there will be no requirement to be 100 per cent vaccinated, but vaccination will be encouraged.
"For those persons who under regulations had abandoned their jobs by not following the requirement, the new epidemiological situation has occasioned an altered regime."
Dr Gonsalves said those teachers interested in employment, who had chosen not to follow the requirements, will have to write to the Ministry of Education to indicate whether they want to be employed for the new period.
The Ministry and the Chief Personnel Officer will announce for what period, which he suspects will be short, probably a week, because schools need to be staffed for the new school term.
The prime minister also agreed that for those employed and not vaccinated in the teaching profession, the State would pay for the first four sets of COVID-19 tests; after that, it will be the person’s responsibility.
He stated the Ministry of Health’s services subcommittee of NEMO would set up the testing regime, which is being discussed at the moment, as rapid tests can be done at the schools.
The prime minister made it clear that this is in no way the reinstatement of teachers and is not the question of an automatic reinstatement of teachers because to say so would be to suggest that the teachers were not legally, constitutionally out of their jobs because they chose not to take the vaccine and follow the requirement.
He said the teachers expressed an interest in re-employment as teachers - those who had not followed the requirement and abandoned their jobs under the law. The prime minister said they would be required to follow the conditions, including periodic testing.
Gonsalves said he understands some teachers have indicated they will not take a test. “If you are not going to take a test, how can you get employment?”
He said even though the epidemiological situation is less severe now than it was at the time of the requirement, the country is still under a Public Health Emergency. There is still the problem of COVID.
As of Monday, SVG had ten persons hospitalised for COVID-19 and for July thus far, there were two deaths, while June had five deaths.
However, the prime minister said it is sensible in the circumstances for some amendments to be made to the requirements which have been made within these terms.
He said because there is no automatic reinstatement, relevant public servants, teachers and the like will have to write to say they are interested in getting employment.
The prime minister announced while speaking at the launch of the Volcanic Eruption Emergency Project this morning.
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