Serious warning over Covid-19 vaccinations in South Africa
South African workers cannot be forced to get a Covid-19 vaccination if such a requirement falls outside the scope of their employment contract. This is the warning from business organisation Sakeliga, which has sent an attorney’s letter to labour minister Thulas Nxesi asking for clarity and rectification following a media statement and directives from his department concerning compulsory vaccinations in workplaces.
In an updated Consolidated Direction on Occupational Health and Safety on 11 June 2021, the minister expressly permitted employers to implement mandatory workplace vaccination policies, subject to certain guidelines that include a workplace risk assessment.
According to Sakeliga CEO Piet Le Roux, the minister’s directives have created the impression that employers should launch compulsory vaccination programmes for employees and contractors, a move that may violate the constitutional right to bodily integrity. Sakeliga supports voluntary vaccination programs in the workplace,” Le Roux said.
“No employee should, however, be obliged or can be obliged by law to undertake medical interventions against their will and outside the scope of the employment contract, and directives or policies of the Department of Labor to the contrary effect are invalid.
He told MyBroadband that provision for mandatory vaccinations may be made in the employee contract but that this can not be a one-way street — any amendments to the contract would have to be agreed to by the employee. He also warned that the department’s directives appeared to be an attempt to transfer the risk of constitutional violations to employers instead of dealing with the possible consequences themselves.
Sakeliga’s position on the matter differs from that of legal firm Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr, which previously published a guide for businesses on mandatory workplace vaccination policies. According to the firm, no legal restrictions prohibited South African businesses from enforcing compulsory vaccination policies for their workforces.
It argued the health and safety litigation in South Africa’s courts at the commencement of lockdown indicated that binding national guidelines which presented a uniformed approach were necessary to protect employees. The Directive has put an end to the debate as to whether a mandatory vaccination policy is legally permissible,” it said following the policy directive’s publication.
The firm added that the introduction of such policies would need to be assessed against the principle of reasonableness and emphasised that employers would need to ensure the rights of employees to bodily integrity and religious freedoms and beliefs were taken into account.
However, Sakeliga said it had obtained legal advice that said no generally applicable South African legislation provided for violating a person’s right to bodily integrity.
“It warrants emphasis that there is no legislation that provides for compulsory vaccination programs,” Le Roux warned. In the attorney letter to the minister, the legal firm Kriek Wassenaar & Venter, for Sakeliga, contended that the policy guideline’s content was oxymoronic.
“Our client’s view is that the public has misinterpreted the minister’s guidelines on mandatory vaccinations and that its application will lead to gross infringements of the constitutional rights of employees and contractors in the corporate arena,” the firm stated.
“The policy has in the last week caused significant legal uncertainty amongst employers and employees regarding the actual position of the law and creates a dangerous legal precedent distinctly undermining the constitutional rights of contracting parties.
Le Roux said the guidelines created a veneer of legitimacy regarding compulsory vaccinations and that this had already led to a gross violation of bodily integrity in the workplace.
Sakeliga has requested the minister and the department withdraw the policy directive by 12 August 2021, insofar as it “illegally provides for seemingly legitimate and compulsory vaccination programs”. The organisation has also requested that a media statement be issued to inform the public of the “correct legal position regarding the constitutional right to bodily integrity”.
In other news – A 16-year-old hacks The Queen actor SK Khoza’s account, demands money
A young computer whiz has decided to take over Sthembiso Khoza’s Instagram account. This comes after making demands that have not yet been met by the star, who plays Shaka in Mzansi Magic’s The Queen.
The display name of the account, which has over 800 000 followers which compromises of fans and industry colleagues, has been renamed to “Sthembiso Khozam”. Learn more
Source: mybroadband
