Unvaccinated job applicants in Scotland are facing discrimination from employers only willing to hire those who’ve been double-jabbed. Although the Scottish Government has allowed unvaccinated staff to continue working at venues that require a vaccine passport, and has made it clear that an employee’s vaccination status must not be taken into consideration by employers, some private companies have decided to set their own rules. The Times has the story.
Human rights experts have warned that overlooking people who refuse jabs for posts may be illegal but a review of the Scottish labour market has uncovered at least seven adverts that say unvaccinated people need not apply.
Clinicians and care workers north of the border are not obliged to have been inoculated like their colleagues in England. Applicants for care home jobs in Scotland must provide proof of vaccination via MyJobsScotland, an official public sector recruitment portal run by Cosla, the council umbrella body.
The Times has found a construction recruitment agency demanding labourers provide proof of vaccination.
Last night Nicola Sturgeon shelved plans to ban unvaccinated people from visiting pubs, gyms and restaurants. She will revisit the proposal on Tuesday after consultation with businesses.
The First Minister has made clear that unvaccinated staff are free to continue working in nightclubs and sports stadiums, which are required to turn away patrons if they do not have a vaccine passport.
Alex Cole-Hamilton, the Scottish Liberal Democrat leader, said that the Times’ analysis provided further evidence that vaccine passports should be scrapped. “We warned Covid ID cards would creep into more and more parts of our lives. It is now happening. These vaccine passports give a false sense of security and people who hold them can be just as infectious.”
The Scottish Greens, who have ministers in Scotland’s SNP-Green power-sharing Government, said that it was “not right that an offer of employment is predicated on an individual’s vaccination status”.
In documents detailing the Scottish Government’s own assessment, vaccine passports must not be a condition of job interviews.
The equalities study warned that bigoted employers could use vaccine certificates to discriminate against ethnic minorities and pregnant women who are less likely to be vaccinated.
The Times analysis showed Search Consultancy Limited, a recruitment agency based in West Sussex, posted a job ad for labourers in Edinburgh, Lothians and Borders stressing that applicants “must be fully vaccinated from Covid”.
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