Lawmakers call on gov’t to define clearly the new Covid-19 rules

Ella Lei

Several lawmakers have called on the government to establish clear rules for the current phase of easing Covid-19 restrictions.

The requests were made on Monday at the Legislative Assembly before the agenda, with many lawmakers addressing the topic via spoken inquiries.

Lawmaker Ella Lei urged the government to clarify what would happen should workers from all sectors need to be placed under home quarantine – a measure that will become effective from today.

“I hope the government can provide clear and specific guidelines. Many residents are concerned about the home quarantine rules. Are there new rules regarding leaving home for necessities and attending public services? Will people be able to go shopping?” she asked.

The same lawmaker also expressed concern over the absence of specific rules applicable to workers who became infected or were classified as a close contact.

Leong Sun Iok

“The government must issue clear guidelines as soon as possible so that employers know how to act regarding the absence of the infected worker from his workplace and work distribution [in such an event]. This is particularly important for establishments and positions where operation must be ensured [at all times]. I hope that companies will adopt accommodating measures with the agreement between both parties – employee and employer – to protect the rights and interests of employees as well as maintain the operation of the companies and minimize disputes,” Lei remarked.

Echoing the concerns, Leong Sun Iok expressed worries about workers’ rights under the new pandemic rules.

Leong wants the government to clarify “the situations in which workers can go to work and which pandemic prevention requirements must be followed in such cases to reduce labor disputes,” he said.

He added, “Currently, workers can only be compensated for accidents at work if they provide proof that they have been infected during working hours. [This means that] even if they have been suspended [from work], isolated or included in red or yellow control areas due to a case in the workplace, their income may not be guaranteed. I am concerned about the guarantees of the right to work and the impact on workers’ income.”

The same lawmaker also expressed that the workplace absences due to Covid-19 should also be covered where employees are infected as well as when they need to handle infections of family members.

Leong said that with the expected increase in the number of infections, is it likely that some workers will be subjected to work overload due to a lack of manpower. He wants companies to account for this eventuality and for the government to provide oversight.

Si Ka Lon: Accelerate Covid response aiming for economic recovery

Addressing the topic of the new Covid-19 prevention and control measures and with a particular focus on the new 10 principles issued by the central government, lawmaker Si Ka Lon urged the local government to “keep up with the pace of national development, take the initiative to respond to changes and change mindsets.”

He also said, “In addition to improving prevention policies, it is necessary to speed up the preparation of plans for the next phase of economic recovery to attract more tourists, adopt more proactive policies to attract business and investment – especially from abroad – and further accelerate the incubation and development of emerging industries to prepare for the recovery of Macau’s economy.”