BL Premium reports that as the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic sweeps across SA, a third of SA’s mining industry medical sites are registered to administer vaccines.
Of the 58 mining sites that have applied to the national department of health to conduct vaccinations, 21 have received their permits. Impala Platinum (Implats), the first company to receive approval and start vaccinations in May, along with Thungela Resources (the recently listed coal business spun out of Anglo American), Harmony Gold, Sibanye-Stillwater and Sasol are all administering the vaccine to their employees in line with government regulations. Harmony and Sibanye started giving the vaccines late last week. The industry has vaccinated 3,397 people to date, the majority of those at Implats. So far, coronavirus deaths in mining stands at 441 of 512,000 employees at 385 mines. The accreditation of sites has been a time-consuming, highly regulated process. One of the big breakthroughs, not only for mines but all workplaces, is the facility to mass register employees on the Electronic Vaccination Data System (EVDS). Companies can secure the consent and details of their employees and can do a bulk registration on the system. Being a voluntary process, it is then up to individuals whether they will receive the vaccination. The mining industry, drawing on its experience in treating HIV/Aids, tuberculosis and other illnesses in the sector, hopes to achieve a 90% rate of vaccination. The industry has offered to provide its healthcare facilities and staff to vaccinate more people than just employees and contractors.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Allan Seccombe at BusinessLive (paywall access only)
- Read too, Mining healthcare sites gear up to increase vaccine rollouts, at Mining Weekly
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page