Trade union boss demands urgent meeting with Prime Minister to address ‘big crisis’

The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) secretary is calling on the Prime Minister to meet urgently with unions representing essential workers to avoid “blind spots” as the country battles Omicron.

ACTU secretary Sally McManus says a meeting between Mr Morrison and the unions is “pretty urgent”.

She is calling for rapid antigen tests to be made free to all and prioritised for frontline workers, paid pandemic leave to be restored for workers who are close contacts with a work colleague, safer work conditions including N95 or P2 masks for workers, and the restoration of income support for people who’ve been left without pay due to COVID-19.

“There’s a big crisis happening at the moment and there’s some action he could take,” she told Tony Jones, filling in for Neil Mitchell.

“If you are making decisions, getting advice from everyone affected, especially when the people at the moment who are most affected are frontline workers, is really critical because actually we’re going to have blind spots and I think at the moment there are a few blind spots.”

Press PLAY below to hear more about why the unions are demanding a meeting with the PM

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