The Victorian government on Tuesday (22 February) announced changes to the pandemic orders and public health recommendations that will come into place at 11:59pm on 25 February 2022.
The public health recommendation for Victorians to work or study from home will be removed, while masks will no longer be needed in most indoor settings.
Masks will only be required indoors in the following circumstances, unless an exemption applies:
- People on public transport, in taxis and ride-share, on planes, and indoors at an airport
- People working or visiting hospitals, and indoor areas at care facilities
- Workers in hospitality, retail and the court system
- Workers at justice and correctional facilities
- Students in year 3 or above at primary school, and workers at early childhood centres and primary schools (masks can be removed in secondary school)
- People working indoors at an event with more than 30,000 people attending
- In special circumstances, such as if you have COVID-19 or are a close contact and you’re leaving home
Tim Piper, the Victorian head of the peak employer association Ai Group, said businesses are celebrating the new mask and work-from-home rule changes and that they are a boost for the community and the economy.
“Businesses around the State have been asking for a relaxation of the rules on masks and working from home,” Mr Piper said.
“They will now be able to reach agreement with their workers on the days to attend the office and what is expected of those employees. And workers won’t need to be wearing masks except in limited circumstances.
“We know that hybrid working arrangements between home and office will persist for the long term. However, improved collaboration, building a business culture and developing skills are best delivered by teams working face to face and maintaining efficiency when working from home depends on a proportion of time spent in the office.
“Employers know there will be a reluctance from some to return to work – for many reasons – and no doubt the changes to working arrangements will occur over the next few weeks. But this announcement is a signal that it is time to return to greater normality and we should get used to it.”
Australian Retailers Association chief executive Paul Zahra said the removal of mask requirements in most Victorian indoor settings is a practical step in getting more people back working in offices and to contribute to the revitalisation of the Melbourne CBD.
“The office occupancy rate in Melbourne is languishing at 4 per cent – the lowest out of all the capital cities in the country,” Mr Zahra said.
“We support the sensible wind-back of restrictions to encourage more people back working in offices and increase foot traffic in the CBD to provide a much-needed boost to the city’s retail businesses.
“International tourists have started to return and it’s now up to the state’s employers to lead the way in managing the safe transition of people back into their offices to truly kick-start the CBD’s recovery.”
Mr Zahra said although most employers and their staff have embraced working-from-home arrangements, it’s important that teams get back face to face to improve mental health outcomes, collaboration and relationship building.
“However, we would like to see masks shift to ‘encouraged’ for retail workers in Victoria as they are in NSW for national consistency and to help remove any workforce barriers for retail workers during this time of acute staff shortages,” he said.
