Helene Davis Whyte, head of the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions - file photo
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Helene Davis Whyte, trade unionist and member of the Economic Recovery Taskforce
The calls are getting louder for the government to reinstitute the work-from-home order amid the surge in COVID-19 cases.
The latest call has come from the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions (JCTU) amid a spate of closures of public and private entities due to employees contracting COVID-19.
The government first introduced the work-from-home order in March but allowed it to expire on May 31.
Since then, the COVID-19 numbers have increased by the hundreds, with Monday's tally standing at 2,459.
Helene Davis Whyte, head of the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions, says the country is now on the cusp of a new phase in the COVID response based on certain triggers identified by the Economic Recovery Taskforce.
"Some of the things that were identified that could trigger the move from one phase to another are the number of COVID beds that are occupied in public hospitals and I think we are well over that now. Most public hospitals are now concerned because they are at capacity or very near capacity in terms of their COVID beds. Also, the other thing that could trigger the move to the restrict phase is the percentage of tests that return positive results for COVID-19 and I think based on all that has been coming out now, by my calculations, we should be very near that marker now if not already passed," she reasoned.
Mrs Davis Whyte said that the government should not wait for the restrict phase, to reintroduce work-from-home.
"Even before we go into that official restrict phase, those entities that can actually operate where the employees can work from home, I think the government should be putting that into effect at least now because it is very apparent that we are very close to community spread and therefore we're placing more and more workers at risk of contracting the virus," she suggested.
The Union of Clerical Administrative and Supervisory Employees earlier called for the government to reintroduce the work-from-home order in light of the delay to the start of the new academic year.
The Human Resource Management Association of Jamaica has also urged the government to reinstitute the work from home policy as the country grapples with a spike in COVID-19 cases.
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