‘Vax passports: Business takes cues from government’ 12 September 2021

With just over 17% of South Africa’s adult population fully vaccinated representatives from business, labour and the government have been thrashing out ways to motivate more people to get jabbed and to restart an economy still reeling from the onslaught of the Covid-19 pandemic. Last week, Discovery South Africa drew a line in the sand, becoming the first company listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange to mandate vaccinations for its staff. In a statement accompanying its year-end financial results, the insurer said the mandatory vaccination policy would come into effect next year. Other companies may follow Discovery’s example. But if vaccines are going to be used as a tool to reopen the economy, some are looking to the government to take the lead.

Discovery said its incoming policy was based on its “clear moral and social obligation, as informed by our core purpose to make people healthier and to enhance and protect their lives; and by our values, particularly, acting as a force for social good; and supported by a legal obligation to protect and safeguard all employees from all potential risks”. The policy draws on a June 2021 directive by Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi, which outlines how mandatory workplace vaccinations can be implemented. The matter was up for debate at the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac).

…First National Bank portfolio manager Wayne McCurrie agreed that vaccine mandates, such as the one taken up by Discovery, could help the country’s ailing economy by getting people back to work. South Africa’s economy contracted by 6.4% in 2020. The country’s GDP has steadily risen after last year’s sharp decline, but it has yet to reach pre-pandemic levels. “By the end of the year — here and worldwide — it will almost be the norm,” said McCurrie. “Ultimately, it is probably a good thing because it may force people who didn’t want to get vaccinated to get vaccinated. And the more people are vaccinated, the less strain the disease will put on the economy.”… Discovery’s policy does not mean that all its unvaccinated employees will lose their jobs, Aadil Patel, the head of employment law at Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr, explained. Employees may be consulted before having to get the vaccine and they have the right to lodge an objection should they not want to do so.