Important new measures impacting our workforce

In a major ramp up of restrictions to quash the spread of the delta variant, the Premier has announced significant new measures to come into effect across Greater Sydney including the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour.

These strong new measures will have a significant impact on our workforce and operations in Greater Sydney starting this weekend. Read the information below to know if and how you are affected. Note that there are no changes to the restrictions in place for regional NSW.

We are continuing to work through what the full impact of these new restrictions will mean and when the Public Health Order becomes available, we will share any updates to this information with you.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

The restrictions below will be in place until 11.59pm on Friday, 30 July.

From 11.59pm, Saturday 17 July:

  • Residents of Fairfield, Canterbury-Bankstown and Liverpool Local Government Areas cannot leave their LGA for work except for emergency services and healthcare workers (including aged and disability workers). Where employees do need to leave their LGA for work, they are required to undergo surveillance testing once every three days.
  • You must have a mask with you at all times when outside your home in Greater Sydney. Masks must be worn when you are working outdoors, in outdoor markets, outdoor shopping strips, and in an outdoor queues waiting for products such as coffee and food.
  • No carpooling can take place in the Greater Sydney region, unless among members of the same household.

From 12.01am on Monday, 19 July:

  • All construction in Greater Sydney is to be paused as well as any non-urgent maintenance, including cleaning services, and repair work on residential premises to be paused.

Read more about the new restrictions in place across Greater Sydney here.

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

If you live in the Fairfield, Canterbury-Bankstown or Liverpool LGAs

If you live or stay in the Fairfield, Canterbury-Bankstown and Liverpool local government areas, from midnight tonight you must not leave your LGA to attend work even if you are in a frontline role.

  • If this applies to you, contact your leader to make sure that they know you are affected and discuss alternative duties that can be done within your LGA or working from home options. If alternative duties are not available and you cannot work from home, you will be supported with special leave.
  • For our people rostered to work up until 11.59pm tonight or after, the following advice applies:
    • People should attend their shift and where possible should be released so they are able to cease work at 11.59pm. If your shift is cut short, you will be paid until the end of your shift as though you had worked.
    • Where this is not operationally possible, people can continue working past 11.59pm until the end of their shift or earlier where until they can be released.
    • In the unlikely event that the order is enforced on our people working past 11.59pm, they will be supported Transport Taskforce in resolving the matter.

Construction sites and non-urgent maintenance in Greater Sydney

All our construction across the Greater Sydney region, including the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, Wollongong and Shellharbour, will be paused from 12.01am Monday 19 July until 11.59pm Friday 30 July. This includes non-urgent maintenance and cleaning. Work can continue up until 11.59pm Sunday to put safety measures in place for when construction is paused.

  • Please talk with your leader if you have any questions about how this will apply to you. If your work is construction or non-safety critical maintenance, discuss alternative duties with your manager. If alternative duties are not available and you cannot work from home, you will be supported with special leave.

Masks required outside

From midnight tonight, it will be mandatory to wear masks in all outdoor workplaces within Greater Sydney. This is in addition to mask wearing being mandatory on public transport services, in public transport waiting area and in all indoor non-residential venues.

  • If you are engaged in road maintenance or any other work that takes place outside, you must now wear a face mask for the duration of your shift. We continue to supply masks for those who require them. Please contact your manager if you need additional supplies.

Carpooling

For our employees in Greater Sydney, carpooling on your way to or from work, or during your shift, can no longer happen unless you are travelling with members of your own household.

Work from home if you can

Transmission in workplaces is a concern in the current outbreak and our message remains that everyone who can work from home should do so until further notice. Where home is not a safe place to work, we will be providing a list of our sites in each restricted LGA for our people to use during this time. This will be posted on stayinformed as soon as possible.