The WA government announced its Safe Transition Plan on 20 December, indicating that borders will be opening from 5 February 2022 and outlined a range of restrictions attached to that opening up. That plan was based on modelling from the Doherty Institute, assuming the Delta variant to be dominant.
Since then we have seen a disastrous unfolding of events in the eastern states of Australia as the rate of Omicron infections has soared. The WA government has stated that it is devising new modelling based on the increased infection rates associated with the Omicron variant.
The SSTUWA anticipates that, as a result, a new transition plan will be announced by the government prior to 5 February. The nature of restrictions to apply are as yet unknown.
SSTUWA Senior Officers are in discussions with the Education Minister and the Department about the impact for staff health and safety in schools.
Specifically, we have raised concerns in relation to:
Vaccination, particularly the logistics of vaccinating all students as well as boosters for all staff
Testing, including priority access to RATs on an ongoing basis for all staff
Ventilation, including CO2 monitoring and filtration devices
Staffing levels
Curriculum delivery
Members will be advised via eNews when more information becomes available.
