Qantas requires employees to be fully vaccinated

Published on : Saturday, August 21, 2021

Qantas recently announced that it will require all employees to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 as part of a commitment to safety. Starting November 15, all frontline employees including cabin crew, pilots and airport workers will need to be fully vaccinated against coronavirus.

The remaining employees will get vaccinate until the end of March. However, very rare individuals who are unable to be vaccinated for documented medical reasons will be treated as exemptions. The policy follows consultation with Qantas and Jetstar employees including a survey sent to 22,000 people to seek their views on vaccination.

The results showed that, of those who responded, 89 per cent had already been vaccinated or are planning to be. Only four per cent were unwilling or unable to get the jab. The 12,000 responses received has made it one of the biggest single surveys on the topic in Australia.

Thousands of aviation workers supporting international flights in New South Wales, South Australia and New Zealand are already required to be vaccinated by those jurisdictions. Alan Joyce, Chief Executive, Qantas Group said that having a fully vaccinated workforce will safeguard people against the virus but also protect customers and the communities.

He mentioned that one crew member can fly into multiple cities and come into contact with thousands of people in a single day therefore making sure they are vaccinated is important as it is the kind of safety leadership people would expect from the airline. He mentioned Qantas provides an essential service so this will help guard against the disruptions that can be caused by just one positive Covid-case shutting down a freight facility or airport terminal.