Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Katie spoke with the Public Sector Union's Kay Densley about how the vaccine mandate is affecting the public sector

Transcript

Katie spoke with the Public Sector Union's Kay Densley about how the vaccine mandate is affecting the public sector · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: It is twenty five minutes away from eleven o'clock, and
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: we know that this mandate obviously kicks in from midnight tonight,
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: and many people wondering if it is going to have
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: any impact on the services delivered by our public service.
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: And joining me on the line right now is Kay Densley,
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: the Northern Territory Regional Secretary of the CPSU. Good morning
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: to Uka.
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: Good morning Katie. Kay.
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: Have we any idea how many public servants are choosing
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: not to be vaccinated at this point?
• 0:33
  Speaker 2: It's pretty hard to tell at this point. Obviously Monday
• 0:37
  Speaker 2: will come around. We do know that, you know, there
• 0:40
  Speaker 2: are people in every agency who are deciding not to
• 0:44
  Speaker 2: do that and to leave their jobs, so hopefully not
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: too many. I'm more concerned with the people with underlying
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: health issues. There's some pregnant people that have concerns about
• 0:55
  Speaker 2: the vaccination at this time. I know that that's able
• 0:59
  Speaker 2: to be taken by you know, other juggs said the
• 1:02
  Speaker 2: same thing. So what we're hoping is that there's some
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: lenience for people to be able to work from home
• 1:07
  Speaker 2: if they can, or take some leaf for short periods
• 1:10
  Speaker 2: of time to get through this, and hoping I think
• 1:13
  Speaker 2: the large majority of people are vaccinated or else are
• 1:17
  Speaker 2: having a job this week.
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: And obviously, Kay, come Monday, we'll have a much clearer idea.
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: And I know we just spoke to Javis Shrine as
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: well from the Education Union, and everybody's sort of feeling
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: I guess a similar way. I'm wondering what kind of
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: impact it is going to have. Are you concerned that that,
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: you know, come Monday we may have a large number
• 1:38
  Speaker 1: or do you think that it is realistically going to
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: be quite small here.
• 1:44
  Speaker 2: I don't think it will be a really large number,
• 1:47
  Speaker 2: but I am concerned about, you know, what jobs these
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: people do that aren't allowed back in the workplace or
• 1:53
  Speaker 2: aren't able to come back in, because that can create
• 1:57
  Speaker 2: not only workload issues for members that are already there,
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: but also you know, I guess, unable to the inability
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: to provide on some of the vital servants services. So
• 2:08
  Speaker 2: we'll see how that goes from Monday. And I did
• 2:12
  Speaker 2: hear Jarvis and we also have concerns about the rapid
• 2:15
  Speaker 2: andag and testing and how that's going to work, and
• 2:17
  Speaker 2: it just seems that they're piling on I understand there's
• 2:21
  Speaker 2: a health reason for it, and we encourage people to
• 2:23
  Speaker 2: get vaccinated, but now they're piling on other things such
• 2:27
  Speaker 2: as mask wearing and rapid anag and testing in communities
• 2:32
  Speaker 2: where it's below seventy percent, which no one knows why
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: they've chosen seventy percent. Some communities, as you would know,
• 2:40
  Speaker 2: we don't even know the percentage. So it just puts
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: a lot of uncertainty and a lot of pressure on
• 2:46
  Speaker 2: people who are already feeling that way.
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: And Kay in terms of the communication and some of
• 2:51
  Speaker 1: those questions being answered then as well by government to
• 2:54
  Speaker 1: the likes of the CPSU, your union. I know Javis
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: had said that you know they're being that lack of communication.
• 3:02
  Speaker 3: Is it the same for you guys?
• 3:04
  Speaker 2: It certainly is, And there's been no consultation and we've
• 3:08
  Speaker 2: heard it from RAN councils and business as well, even
• 3:11
  Speaker 2: when the decisions made. It'd be nice to get their
• 3:13
  Speaker 2: heads up about it and be able to have the
• 3:15
  Speaker 2: ability to ask them questions, to be able to relay
• 3:18
  Speaker 2: the correct information to our members. But yeah, the Chief
• 3:21
  Speaker 2: Minister seems to think that he doesn't have to do
• 3:24
  Speaker 2: any of that and just seems to here be rattling
• 3:28
  Speaker 2: off all these different things without explanation or talking to
• 3:32
  Speaker 2: people about how it's going to work in practice.
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: And we all get it right, Like, we all understand
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: that a lot of these is having to sort of
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: happen on the run because the situation is ever evolving.
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: But I think that a lot of that uncertainty, if
• 3:44
  Speaker 1: you're able to communicate with people really well, you do
• 3:47
  Speaker 1: actually get through some of that uncertainty.
• 3:50
  Speaker 3: But that's not what we're getting at the moment.
• 3:52
  Speaker 2: It certainly isn't. And you know, it just seems to
• 3:56
  Speaker 2: be directions left, right and center. And we've seen today
• 3:59
  Speaker 2: even about the vouchers, so you know that 'springe on
• 4:02
  Speaker 2: people as well, and we still don't know about you know,
• 4:06
  Speaker 2: who checks what when people are entering a workforce. There's
• 4:12
  Speaker 2: whilst we have to react, there is the ability to
• 4:15
  Speaker 2: plan and to consult with people, and and there's people
• 4:19
  Speaker 2: that actually know the practicality the things that should have
• 4:22
  Speaker 2: been involved in all these decisions. But instead we all
• 4:25
  Speaker 2: just you know, what's going on and trying the best
• 4:29
  Speaker 2: we can to follow the legal direction that we've been given.
• 4:34
  Speaker 1: Kay, are you worried about how this is all going
• 4:36
  Speaker 1: to unfold on Monday? Look?
• 4:40
  Speaker 2: I think, as I said, I think the majority of
• 4:43
  Speaker 2: people are having vaccinations. I know of some who are
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: having some today. Concerned about the people that aren't given
• 4:49
  Speaker 2: that flexibility even for a while to For example, people
• 4:54
  Speaker 2: have specialist appointments which are hard to get and you
• 4:57
  Speaker 2: can't always get them at the time frame that the
• 4:59
  Speaker 2: achievement the sets, so you know, the ability for those
• 5:03
  Speaker 2: people to either work from home or actives leave, you know,
• 5:07
  Speaker 2: there's there's issues there with that as well. So yeah,
• 5:12
  Speaker 2: we'll just have to wait and see for Monday, and
• 5:14
  Speaker 2: then of course we have the rapid and engine testing
• 5:16
  Speaker 2: issues next for next week, and and of course we
• 5:20
  Speaker 2: have our bargaining ballot for the NTPs General Agreement that
• 5:24
  Speaker 2: closes afternoon at three pm. So it's a busy day
• 5:27
  Speaker 2: for the unions today.
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: Yeah, what's so, what's gonna happen with that that bargaining
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: ballot today?
• 5:33
  Speaker 3: Do you reckon Kai?
• 5:35
  Speaker 2: Well, it closes at three pm, so we'll see. I'm
• 5:37
  Speaker 2: unsure about how many people have voted in their Our
• 5:41
  Speaker 2: members are telling us that they're voting no and have
• 5:43
  Speaker 2: asked us to promote that, as have all the unions.
• 5:47
  Speaker 2: In the general agreement. We've had power and Water eighty
• 5:50
  Speaker 2: six percent, No, Jacana seventy percent. No. So we'll see
• 5:56
  Speaker 2: what happens at three o'clost this afternoon. But we're hoping
• 5:59
  Speaker 2: that the Chief Minister is going to rethink his wages policy,
• 6:03
  Speaker 2: which again he didn't consult on or even talk to
• 6:08
  Speaker 2: us before he made the announcement. So he's going to
• 6:10
  Speaker 2: have to learn that it's better to bring people with
• 6:14
  Speaker 2: you than just issue orders.
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: Okay, I mean most people when they think of the
• 6:18
  Speaker 1: Labor Party, they do think of unions as well, and
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: you know, see them as working together.
• 6:26
  Speaker 3: Have you ever had sort of such a lack of
• 6:29
  Speaker 3: communication from a chief minister before?
• 6:32
  Speaker 2: No, No, I haven't, and it certainly doesn't happen at
• 6:36
  Speaker 2: a schedule level or at a state level in other places.
• 6:39
  Speaker 2: So I'm unsure what the problem is, but there is
• 6:43
  Speaker 2: a problem there.
• 6:45
  Speaker 1: Well, Kay Densley, it sounds as I'm going to be
• 6:47
  Speaker 1: talking to you early next week as well.
• 6:49
  Speaker 3: We really appreciate your time.
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: All the best on your busy day today.
• 6:54
  Speaker 2: Thank you, Katie, Thank you