Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 July 2020
58. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation if he has considered recommendations by an organisation (details supplied) to make Covid-19 notifiable to the Health and Safety Authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16544/20]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am aware of the views of ICTU concerning the requirements around the reporting of COVID-19 to the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) and, indeed, I intend to meet ICTU soon.
Separately, I would like to advise the Deputy that COVID-19 has been included as a notifiable disease under the Infectious Diseases (Amendment) Regulations 2020. Any infectious disease pandemic is first and foremost a matter of public health for which a legal basis for reporting already exists under public health legislation. Notifiable infectious diseases are statutorily reportable under the Infectious Diseases Regulations 1981 to the Chief Medical Officer of the Department of Health for investigation and control.
At present, under occupational safety and health legislation, employers are required to report all workplace accidents that result in more than 3 days absence. This requirement to report accidents does not apply to a person who suffers from a disease, occupational illness or any impairment of mental health in the workplace.
There are some considerations to take into account in relation to introducing the mandatory reporting occupational diseases and/or illnesses to the Health and Safety Authority. These include the fact that many employers would not in a position to assess or attribute the diagnosis of an illness such as COVID-19 with any degree of reliability, to a particular workplace, since COVID-19 can be acquired in either a community or a workplace setting. Furthermore, it would also introduce an obligation on employees to provide detailed confidential medical information to their employer which could be seen as contrary to the protection of an individual’s right to the privacy of such information.
However, I understand that the Board of the Health and Safety Authority has requested a review of the reporting obligations concerning infectious diseases in the context of employer obligations under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005. The review will include consultation with a range of parties including the Department of Health and the State Claims Agency and will also examine if a proposed change can be achieved without increasing reporting requirements for employers outside the Health sector and can be aligned with GDPR requirements. It will also look at the practices in other European Countries for the reporting of infectious diseases by employers. The review should be complete in early September and I have asked that it also be submitted to my Department for consideration.
