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BusinessLive reports that SA’s largest public service union, the National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union (Nehawu), has called on public and private healthcare sector workers to not perform their duties if employers do not provide protective equipment to shield them against Covid-19.
The union's call followed health minister Dr Zweli Mkhize’s recent remarks that an ongoing investigation into allegations of noncompliance at Netcare St Augustine's hospital in Durban would reveal how and why 48 nurses tested positive for Covid-19. There have been other cases elsewhere of nurses testing positive. Nehawu general secretary Zola Saphetha said they had observed “an upsurge” in the number of healthcare workers who had been exposed to the virus. He said: “Private healthcare providers are the biggest culprits in failing to put proactive measures to protect workers from contracting the virus while in the front-line of actively fighting the virus. In this regard, we call on all healthcare workers not to perform their duties without proper and sufficient provision of protection in a manner that puts their lives at risk. Workers are encouraged to put their lives first before attending to the nation.” Saphetha also called on managers to not force or intimidate employees to work without protection as “this is tantamount to attempted murder and a criminal offence”.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive
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