Stay home to work

Businesses face $9900 fine

VICTORIANS who have been working from home must continue to do so for at least another month, as part of efforts to prevent a second wave of coronavirus.

From Monday, the obligation for employers to keep staff working from home will be included in Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton’s directions.

Businesses will be subject to spot checks and could face fines up to $9913 if they force staff back to the office.

“Just to avoid any doubt, we wanted to have the message as clear and as sharp as possible: if you have been working from home, you must keep working from home,” Premier Daniel

Andrews said yesterday. The directive will be in place at least until the end of June and contrasts with other states, where a staged return to workplaces is set to begin from Monday.

“If everyone tries to get back to office blocks and end their working-from-home arrangements, we’ll simply have too many people in close contact that will spread the virus,” Mr Andrews said.

“That will cause enormous challenges and could potentially lead to a second wave.

“That’s what we’re trying to avoid.”

Professor Sutton said the directive would apply to hundreds of thousands of people and help to avoid congestion in workplaces, as well as lowering foot traffic and decreasing numbers on public transport.

“It’s a really powerful additional measure that can drive down transmission of this virus,” he said.

About 15 per cent of the state’s public transport capacity can be used safely while maintaining social distancing.

The work-from-home order came as Keilor Downs Secondary College, in Melbourne’s northwest, was closed for cleaning after a student tested positive to COVID-19.

“The student was probably infectious on-site on the 26th of this month and was notified yesterday,” Prof Sutton said.

He said the student was associated with a family cluster announced on Thursday.

He said there was no evidence of a link between the student and a staff member who tested positive last Friday, as the teacher had no exposure to the school site.

A St Albans Secondary College student and six students at Taylors Lakes Secondary College have been identified as close contacts of the infected student, who attended a VET class while infected.

Those students, and 78 other known contacts, will enter 14-day self-isolation but their schools have not closed.

“This student has acquired it from a broader family group, but how that family group acquired it is under investigation,” Prof Sutton said. “It might indicate there are some low levels of transmission in or around Keilor Downs.”