Victorian health authorities have identified company kitchens / tearooms as a key site for COVID-19 transmission through permitted workplaces, after several cases recently spread in construction and transport break rooms.
Victorian COVID-19 response commander Jeroen Weimar observed growing cases out of tearooms as a place where people mix and do not wear masks, as well as interact with other colleagues on different shifts. Read more here.
Employee car parks have also been identified as a transmission risk as they are often a site for “innocent socialising”, where people feel safe to remove their masks and are not conscious of the need for social distancing.
Worksafe have summarised a list of communal workplace environments which pose the highest risk of COVID transmission:
- Shared facilities such as bathrooms, kitchens and communal break areas
- Personnel hoists and lifts
- Shared tools or equipment
- Work that requires employees to be in close contact with others
Members are advised to review their COVID Safe plans with particular emphasis on any communal break rooms.
