Employees given a month to take COVID-19 booster shots in UAE

The Federal Authority for Government Human Resources (FAHR) on Saturday issued a circular to all ministries and federal entities, updating the measures implemented at the federal government level to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

The circular stipulated that, in accordance with the directives of the UAE government regarding the implementation of the "Green Pass Protocol" for all federal government employees and after coordinating with the competent authorities and the Ministry of Health and Prevention, FAHR has decided to standardise all resolutions related to the COVID-19 preventive measures, to facilitate the work of federal government entities.

The authority called on the ministries and federal authorities to ensure that all their employees have received the booster shot of the COVID-19 vaccine, stressing the importance of having all federal government employees take the booster shot within a month from this circular's date of issuance, and in line with UAE-approved booster shot guidelines, including vaccination time frames and eligibility for each vaccine. This step aims to ensure optimal efficiency in implementing the Green Pass on the AlHosn app.

According to the circular, unvaccinated employees will not be allowed entry to federal government entities starting 3rd January, 2022. Moreover, federal government entities must adhere to the guidelines issued by the competent authorities and urge their employees to take the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible to be allowed to enter their workplace.

The authority also instructed all federal government entities to regulate procedures relating to COVID-19 positive employees and contact tracing by using, as a reference, FAHR's instruction manual on ways of dealing with employees who are suspected or confirmed of having COVID-19 and those who came into contact with positive cases in the workplace. Federal government entities must also abide by the mechanisms for registering such cases, as well as vaccinated employees and remote work applications, in federal government-approved electronic systems.

The authority stressed the urgency of having all federal authorities adhere to precautionary measures to limit the spread of epidemics in workplaces, by implementing the FAHR-issued instruction manual on the office work environment and working from the office in emergency situations, and the mechanisms for dealing with those seeking government services or visitors to federal government entities, as well as the penalty guide of the violations committees at federal government entities when dealing with employees who fail to comply with precautionary measures.

The authority noted that these procedures and guidelines may be updated or amended in line with the latest requirements of health authorities, and in coordination with authorities concerned with emergencies and crises.

WAM