Bosses Reported for Asking COVID-Positive Workers to Come To Work
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In Malacca, the state health department has warned employers not to ask workers who have been confirmed positive for Covid-19 or those who are close contacts of Covid-19 cases to report to work. If they fail to comply with the warning, the employers will face disciplinary action.
Multiple complaints were sent to Malacca health department
The chairman of Malacca's State Health and Anti-Drug Committee, Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh, stated that it had received multiple complaints on the matter.
The complaints say that some employers of premises, such as supermarkets, restaurants, and the manufacturing sector, had requested employees to return to work as usual.
He said that the department encourages any worker who is experiencing this situation to report the matter to them as they are currently working to control the spread of clusters in the workplace. In Malacca, workplace clusters have begun to increase.
Dr Muhamad Akmal was performing a spot check at a Factory in Merlimau yesterday. He said that employers need to comprehend the meaning of 'close contact' so they can manage the Covid-19 infection in the workplace earlier and not spread the disease to the local community.
Rising cases involving workplace clusters
According to him, the frequency of clusters in the workplace in Malacca has increased as of late. Based on the data received, the number of close contacts at work has risen from 4.8% to almost 10% in the last three days.
During the spot check, the Malacca health department had also ordered a one-week shutdown, starting today, after a sharp hike in cases at the factory. It had also found that the Covid-19 infection had extended to other parts of the premises.
He claimed that since 5 February, a total of 21 workers at the factory have tested positive via Real-Time Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) testing. He also said that the health department had ordered the factory to shut down in line with the standard operating procedures (SOPs) imposed.
If the factory can provide infection prevention and safety measures based on the assessment by the Jasin district health office, then the department will allow for it to reopen.
Dr Muhamad Akmal also stated that the Malacca health department does not arbitrarily order factories to shut down and that it is according to the inspection at the workplace. However, if the virus has spread to other parts and becomes uncontrollable, the department will need to order to shut the factory down.
Source: BERNAMA