A longstanding trade unionist has hinted that any legal move to make testing or vaccination of workers mandatory could receive major pushback if the majority of workers do not want to go that route, and he has suggested full engagement of all players before a decision is to be taken.
And with no certainty of when or if the COVID-19 pandemic will go away, a human resource expert has urged employers to start engaging their legal team on what policies could become necessary for testing and vaccination of employees.
Experts examined the issue on Tuesday during a Human Resource Management Association of Barbados (HRMAB) discussion – Jabs for Jobs: The Legality of COVID-19 Vaccinations for Employment.
HRMAB President Brittany Brathwaite told Barbados TODAY she believed there could be scope for new workplace policies and even a national legal framework being introduced.
But she quickly pointed out that it was not clear cut given the considerations that must be taken into account including the likely industrial relations fallout.
It is for this reason that Brathwaite said it will be critical for employers to start engaging their legal teams as they continue the discussion on what workplace policies should look like as they seek to win the fight against the dreaded COVID-19.
Brathwaite said: “I think what really substantively came out of today’s session is that there may be some legal leeway for industries to come together and say ‘okay, based on the threshold of interaction, based on what we are requiring of our consumer then this is what we are going to also require of our employee’. Of course, there may be legal arguments that rebut that, but there were summations made today that make that seem feasible.”
She maintained that while there was no definitive answer at this stage whether a company should mandate testing or vaccination of staff, it was worth having a discussion about at the level of the workplace and the country.
Brathwaite added: “Every employer should, of course, engage their attorney to see what sound legal advice they can provide and the policies that they should be considering because we have to consider that if we do not have a national mandate by now – and I don’t think we can get one by next month or the next two months – but how, as tourism reopen, do we craft policies at the organizational level to then treat to these scenarios.
“Are industries going to be forced to come together and say ‘look, we cannot recover unless we make this a requirement in our industry? Or are we going to continue to engage and encourage on the immunization front, but not make it a requirement in any employment context? I think the next step is really going to be whether industries come together and have legal minds come together and create an argument around whether they can or cannot.”
She was speaking after Dennis de Peiza, General Secretary of the Congress of Trade Union and Staff Associations of Barbados, raised concern about what recourse was available for an employer if an employee is willing to be tested for the virus.
He told the forum: “Do we compensate them if we say ‘okay, you don’t want to be tested, go home for 14 days?’ You send me home so I have a right to be paid. But then do I move to the ultimate and determine that I am going to separate with you by termination first.
“Some of you will be exuberant enough to move to the front. I would caution against that. I would suggest that you give time to try and work this thing out before you reach that point, and even if you are going to look to terminate, let it be mutual separation.”
The CTUSAB boss further recommended a collective agreement model be employed for new standards in the workplace relating to the COVID-19 testing and vaccination while insisting that full discussion should be had and workers should be able to give inputs.
He said: “There are reviews by persons on whether it is right or wrong, legal or unjust, and all those factors have to be taken into consideration before we come to a position. Because at each step of the way there will be some repercussions and we have to be ready to treat to them to keep a good relationship.
“Clearly, if the majority of persons decide they don’t want to get tested there are going to be some serious implications for the workforce, as the workplace is to maintain their operations.
“Now that is going to put society in a real tailspin, so to speak. So we have to find a solution to the problem and force is not the way. That is why we are always suggesting that legal means might seem to be the force of law but force of law can sometimes have a serious pushback and if that pushback is so strong you can have the current going in the opposite direction which can derail the entire exercise that we are trying to achieve.
“So I think there has to be some in-depth thought given to how we proceed in the context that the legal framework might not be the best at this time but to have the moral suasion and more in-depth discussion so that we can come to a solution that is a win-win situation going forward.”
(marlonmadden@barbadostoday.bb)
The post Labour official, HR experts on mandatory COVID tests, vaccinations appeared first on Barbados Today.