BHP to require COVID vaccinations at Australian sites
Reuters
Published Oct 07, 2021 03:42AM ET
MELBOURNE (Reuters) - BHP Group (NYSE:BHP), the world's largest listed mining company, announced on Thursday that from the end of January all workers and visitors entering its workplaces in Australia will need to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
Those requirements will be introduced earlier for some sites in high risk areas, such as Mt Arthur coal mine in New South Wales state, BHP said in a statement.
Australia has struggled since mid-year to contain an outbreak of the highly infectious Delta variant of COVID-19.
It is now pushing to increase vaccination rates so that cities can begin lowering their lockdowns.
“The science is clear that widespread vaccination saves lives," BHP Minerals Australia President Edgar Basto said in a statement.
"We recognise the path forward is through widespread vaccination in Australia and we are looking at a range of practical ways to support that while protecting communities and workforces," he said.
The Mining and Energy Union said that it did not support BHP’s decision to mandate vaccines and that it was working through the legal implications of the decision.
"We have strongly advocated to government and industry that COVID-19 vaccinations should be voluntary for mineworkers," it said in a statement.
Western Australia, where BHP runs its iron ore operations, and which has remained mostly coronavirus free, said earlier this week that it would require all employees that work with natural resources to have a first COVID-19 shot from December.
That was to help protect vulnerable Indigenous communities as the country begins opening up, it said.
Australia's coronavirus numbers are relatively low, with some 120,000 cases and 1,381 deaths. The country's double dose vaccination rate has climbed to around 47%.
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.