We have sought to put together the key compliance elements for schools operating under Stage 4 ‘work from home’ restrictions in metropolitan Melbourne. We will briefly cover the following:

• the activities and people who may work onsite at the school
• workers’ permits for those employees required to go onsite
• COVID Safe Plans which must be implemented by midnight Friday 7 August by employers who require workers to go onsite
• notification requirements if an employee is diagnosed with COVID-19
• support payments available from the Federal and Victorian Governments for employees required to self-isolate.

Detailed information on specific measures for schools in relation to temperature checks, face masks, physical distancing and cleaning are available on the Department of Education and Training website Coronavirus (COVID-19) Advice for Schools page.

Permissible Onsite Operations and People

While working from home and remote learning are the default position, some school functions and workers carrying out specific functions are allowed to continue, provided the school has a COVID Safe Plan in place.

Most school on site activities are closed, with remote learning taking place for all students, except as set out below.

Onsite supervision for P-10 students in the following categories:

• children whose parents work in one of the defined essential continuing industries
• vulnerable children including:
   
  • children in out-of-home care
  • children deemed by Child Protection and/or Family Services to be at risk of harm
  • children identified by the school as vulnerable (including via referral from a family violence agency, homelessness or youth justice service or mental health or other health service)
• children with a disability who also fit one of the above two categories, or where the family is experiencing severe stress
• onsite attendance for completion of mandatory assessments by students and staff for VCAL and VCE.

Early Childhood Education and Care (including Sessional Kindergarten, Long Day Care, Outside School Hours Care, Family Day Care):

• only permitted workers and vulnerable children (e.g. those in out of home care or known to child protection, medically/socially vulnerable children, Koori children), children of permitted workers, permitted industry remote workers authorised for care

Specialist schools:

• only permitted workers and vulnerable children

Onsite attendance is also permitted for essential cleaning, maintenance and business operations functions:

• maintaining and continuing medical and other research that requires onsite attendance
• care for animals, agriculture and horticulture
• conduct cleaning, essential maintenance (including facilities, equipment and IT) and provide security
• provide practical student support, where this cannot be done remotely.

Sources:

Victorian Department of Health and Health Services – Stage 4 Restrictions

Business Victoria Education and Training Sector Guidance 

Permitted Worker Permits

From 11:59pm on Wednesday 5 August, employers that require their staff to attend a work site must issue a worker permit to their employees. On the spot fines and penalties apply to employers and employees for breaches. An employee may travel to work without a worker permit once to get their first permit.

Employers can issue a worker permit to their employee if:

• the organisation is on the list of permitted activities (see above)
• the employee is working in an approved category for onsite work (see above); and
• the employee cannot work from home.

Each employee required to be onsite must receive an individual worker permit, signed (this may be an electronic signature) by a suitable person authorised by the school to issue the permit and signed by the employee.

These worker permits must be carried by the worker as well as photo identification when travelling to and from work. This may be shown electronically such as a photo or scanned copy on a mobile device.

An adult can take an essential worker to and from their place of work without a worker permit, if the worker is their dependant and unable to transport themselves.

The Permitted Worker Permit template and further information are available at the DHHS website.

Note: Penalties of up to $19,826 (for individuals) and $99,132 (for businesses) will apply to employers who issue worker permits to employees who do not meet the requirements of the worker permit scheme or who otherwise breach the scheme requirements.

COVID Safe Plans

Schools must have a COVID Safe Plan if there will be any employees/workers on site. This must be implemented by midnight Friday 7 August and should then be communicated to staff. There are no requirements for this to be registered with any government agencies, but it must be in place.

Business Victoria website has COVID Safe Plan guidance and a template COVID Safe Plan which is long but fairly straightforward to tailor to your school.

The COVID Safe Plan must set out, at a minimum:

• the process that you have in place to keep records of all staff or visitors who attend the work premises
• your actions to mitigate the introduction of COVID-19 in your workplace
• the level of face-covering or personal protective equipment (PPE) required for your workforce
• how you will prepare for, and respond to, a suspected or confirmed case of COVID-19 in your workplace.

Note that this must be implemented by midnight Friday, so that means that, for example, if your school has not done so already, appropriate PPE and hand sanitisers must be available, social distancing markers and signs are in place, appropriate additional cleaning supplies and procedures are in place.

Information on the DET website on measures to address COVID-19 will assist a school to complete their COVID Safe Plan.

If a Staff Member Becomes Ill with COVID-19

Schools (employers) must notify WorkSafe immediately after becoming aware that:

• an employee, independent contractor, employee of the independent contractor or self-employed person has received a confirmed diagnosis of coronavirus (COVID-19) and
• the employee, independent contractor, employee of the independent contractor or self-employed person has attended the workplace within the relevant infection period.

An employer will be considered to be 'aware' of the incident when they have been notified of the confirmed diagnosis by either the employee, independent contractor, employee of the independent contractor, or by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS).

Working from home: notification is not required when a person's workplace is their home, and that person has not attended any other workplace over which their employer has management or control of, within the relevant infection period.

The infectious period under these regulations, is the period of time between:

• the date, being 14 days prior to the onset of symptoms consistent with coronavirus (COVID-19) or a confirmed coronavirus (COVID-19) diagnosis (whichever comes first); and
• the day on which the person receives a clearance from isolation from DHHS.

Notification is by completing a COVID-19 Reporting form available at the WorkSafe website or calling WorkSafe on 13 23 60.

Employees Absent due to COVID-19 Illness

If an employee is not receiving any income or income support payments, they may be eligible for the following:

Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment (Federal Government via Services Australia)

This payment is available more than once if the self-isolation criteria are met.

Where the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services has required the person to self-isolate or quarantine because:

•  the person has COVID-19
•  they have been in close contact with a person who has COVID-19
• they care for a child, 16 years and under, who has COVID-19
• they care for a child, 16 years and under, who has been in close contact with a person who has COVID-19.

This is only available if the person has no income from paid work, including sick leave entitlements, and is not receiving any existing payments such as Jobkeeper, paid parental leave, income support payment or ABSTUDY living allowance, or the Victorian Coronavirus Worker Support Payment.

Further information available at the Services Australia /Centrelink website.

Corona Virus Worker Support Payment (Victorian Government)

This is a one-off $1500 Coronavirus (COVID-19) Worker Support payment where the person has been instructed by the Department of Health and Human Services:

• to self-isolate or quarantine at home because they are either diagnosed with coronavirus (COVID-19) or are a close contact of a confirmed case

• that a child aged under 16 in their care needs to self-isolate or quarantine at home because they are either diagnosed with coronavirus (COVID-19) or are a close contact of a confirmed case.

In addition, to receive the payment the person:

• was likely to have worked during the period of self-isolation or quarantine and are unable to work as a result of the requirement to stay at home
• must not be receiving any income, earnings or salary maintenance from work

• must have exhausted sick leave entitlements including any special pandemic leave

• must not be receiving the JobKeeper payment or other forms of Australian Government income support.

Further information is available at the DHHS website.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Test Isolation Payment

An employee who is unable to work while waiting for COVID test results may be eligible for a $300 Coronavirus Test Isolation Payment provided that they would have been likely to work but unable to work due to:

• a requirement to self-isolate after the test
• a requirement to stay in isolation to care for someone who is required to self-isolate.

The person must not be receiving an income and has exhausted entitlements to sick/carer’s leave, or special pandemic leave.

Infectious Diseases Leave (some Enterprise Agreements)

Some schools are party to Enterprise Agreements, such as the Victorian Catholic Education Multi-Enterprise Agreement 2018 which provide for infectious diseases leave which entitles the employee to paid leave for a period significantly beyond normal sick leave entitlements. Depending on the wording of the clause this may be available for an employee who has contracted COVID-19 through contact in the workplace.

We offer our sincere best wishes to all schools and school communities in Victoria, and in Melbourne in particular, during these especially challenging times. Please let us know if we can assist you.