WELLINGTON, New Zealand: New Zealand’s government said Tuesday it will expand a vaccine mandate to include thousands of workers who have close contact with their customers — including employees at restaurants, bars, gyms and hair salons.
The changes will mean that about 40 percent of all New Zealand workers will need to get fully vaccinated against the coronavirus or risk losing their jobs, up from about 15 percent previously.
Speaking with reporters, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said she didn’t believe the new rules were an overreach of government power.
“This requirement means staff and customers are treated equally and it will play a big part in helping to minimize the spread of the virus in the highest-risk venues by reducing the potential for COVID to enter the business in the first place,” Ardern said.
Workers who had previously been told they needed to get their shots included teachers and health care professionals.
Tuesday’s announcement came just a few days after the government set a target of getting 90 percent of people aged 12 and over fully vaccinated in order to end the cycle of lockdowns.
Auckland, the largest city, has been in lockdown for more than two months after an outbreak of the delta variant.
As part of its plan to end lockdowns, New Zealand will also require people visiting high-traffic businesses to show vaccine passports to prove they’ve had their shots.
The conservative opposition National Party said there was no need for restrictions such as vaccine passports once vaccination targets were met.
“Some businesses will choose to require proof of vaccination. Others will not,” said opposition leader Judith Collins in a statement.
New Zealand expands vaccine mandate to 40 percent of all workers
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New Zealand expands vaccine mandate to 40 percent of all workers
- The changes will mean that about 40 percent of all New Zealand workers will need to get fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or risk losing their jobs
- Auckland, the largest city, has been in lockdown for more than two months after an outbreak of the delta variant
North Korea says it respects Iran’s choice of new supreme leader: KCNA
- North Korea, a longstanding US adversary, has previously condemned the US-Israeli attack on Iran an “illegal act of aggression”
- Defying US President Donald Trump’s desire to have a say in who runs Iran, the Islamic republic on Sunday named Mojtaba Khamenei to replace his father, longtime ruler Ali Khamenei, who died in an Israeli airstrike on February 28
SEOUL: North Korea respects Iran’s choice of new supreme leader, state media reported Wednesday, as it accused the United States and Israel of destroying regional peace.
“With regard to the recent official announcement that Iran’s Assembly of Experts elected the new leader of the Islamic Revolution, we respect the rights and choice of the Iranian people to elect their supreme leader,” an unnamed Foreign Ministry spokesperson was quoted as saying by state news agency KCNA.
Defying US President Donald Trump’s desire to have a say in who runs Iran, the Islamic republic on Sunday named Mojtaba Khamenei to replace his father, longtime ruler Ali Khamenei, who died in an Israeli airstrike on February 28.
North Korea, a longstanding US adversary, has previously condemned the US-Israeli attack on Iran an “illegal act of aggression.”
On Wednesday, the North Korean spokesperson reiterated that position, saying that the United States and Israel “are destroying the regional peace and security foundations and escalating instability worldwide.”
“Any rhetorical threats and military action, which violate the political system and territorial integrity of the relevant country, interfere in its internal affairs and openly advocate the attempt to overthrow its social system, deserve worldwide criticism and rejection as they can never be tolerated,” the spokesperson added.
In recent months, the Trump administration has mounted a push to revive high-level talks with Pyongyang, eyeing a potential summit between the US president and the North’s Kim Jong Un this year.
After largely ignoring those overtures for months, Kim recently said that the two nations could “get along” if Washington accepted Pyongyang’s nuclear status.
