Unions dissatisfied with Covid vaccination registration in healthcare

The caretaker cabinet wants healthcare employers to be able to register whether or not their staff members were vaccinated against the coronavirus. This is necessary because care workers have a special responsibility for often vulnerable patients, caretaker Health Minister Hugo de Jonge said. Registering vaccination status will help employers adjust rosters, for example. Trade unions are not happy with this idea, NOS reports.

According to trade union FNV, vaccination registration is "indirect coercion" and not a "solution for vaccination coverage". Trade unions spoke out against this idea almost unanimously, a FNV spokesperson said to NOS.

CNV Zorg & Welzijn is definitely against vaccination registration. "It creates a lot of tension between healthcare staff," chairman Anneke Westerlaken told NOS. "We already experienced situations in healthcare where people are threatening to withhold wages or dismissal because people do not want to be vaccinated. We understand that registering can be nice for very vulnerably groups, but we really fear polarization."

Professional organization NU'91 told RTL Nieuws that it was "unpleasantly surprised" by this plan of the caretaker cabinet. "That is medical data, and healthcare workers should be treated in it with the same conditions as other people. We find it regrettable that they do this," said chairman Stella Salden.