COVID-19
Guarantee paid special leave for all workers: Unions
The Australian union movement, including the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association, is calling on the Federal Government to mandate paid special leave for all workers, including casual and contract workers.
Australian unions are standing together on behalf of the 32% of working Australians who do not have access to paid leave. These workers will not have any income if they are required to take time off work due to contracting COVID-19 or if required to self-isolate.
This puts pressure on health workers’ ability to stop the spread of COVID-19, as workers are forced to choose between keeping themselves and their communities safe, or being able to put food on the table.
“We must remove the financial penalty for people to make the decision to self-isolate”, said Australian Unions Secretary Sally McManus.
“We’ve seen the Morrison Government ignoring workers. It is not good enough and we will keep fighting to get paid special leave for as many as possible.”
To date, the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association has secured paid special leave for COVID-19 for a large cohort of their members, including those working for NSW Health, Healthscope and BUPA. The Association is continuing to negotiate with other healthcare operators to provide this benefit for members.
For more up to date information go to: www.thelamp.com.au
To support this campaign, please sign this petition.
If you believe you are entitled to special paid leave for COVID-19, but are having issues accessing it, NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association can assist. You can contact us here.
If you are not yet a member, you can join today to receive help during this COVID-19 pandemic.