This news aggregator site highlights South African labour news from a wide range of internet and print sources. Each posting has a synopsis of the source article, together with a link or reference to the original. Postings cover the range of labour related matters from industrial relations to generalist human resources.
TimesSelect writes that teachers with underlying medical conditions and those 60 and older are reportedly “terrified” of returning to classrooms because they are at greater risk of contracting the coronavirus.
Basil Manuel of the National Professional Teachers’ Organisation of SA (Naptosa) said the union had “very real concerns” about teachers 60 years old and over. “We have put it on the table with the department of basic education that we want very clear health-based instructions about how people with underlying conditions and those over 60 are going to be treated. We need to know exactly what the health department is saying to us. If their [teachers’] lives are in danger, we will definitely not support that they report to school,” he indicated. Manuel also said a departmental official who had been on a ventilator for more than two weeks after contracting the virus overseas was “panicking” about returning to work. He pointed out that there were a number of teachers over the age of 60 in the education system, many of whom were teaching matric pupils. David de Korte of the SA Principals’ Association indicated: “No one is going to be forced to come back to school if they feel fearful that their health is going to be at risk.” Speculation is rife that at-risk teachers could apply for special leave if they furnished proof of an underlying medical condition.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Prega Govender at TimesSelect
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page