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Some of the masks distributed to hospitals and aged care homes at the height of the pandemic as part of the federal government s national medical stockpile have been judged defective by the Therapeutic Goods Administration.
Laboratory testing by Australiaâs medical regulator identified a range of issues with some disposable surgical masks branded Softmed and imported by M House.
The issues include quality control, lack of proper labelling, and inconsistent fluid resistance between batches. Fluid resistance is vital for medical masks, as fluid droplets generated by coughing and sneezing have been found to spread COVID-19.
A Kirby Institute study, published in November, estimated Australian healthcare workers were nearly three times more likely to become infected with coronavirus than other Australians. More than 3560 healthcare workers have been infected with COVID-19 in Victoria. Nearly three-quarters of them caught the virus at work.
Born in Liverpool, England, on June 1, 1949, John joined the Merchant Navy in 1966. Arriving in Fremantle in 1969, he jumped ship and began a new life in Australia.
The following year, he joined the New South Wales branch of the Federated Ship Painters and Dockers Union. His father, too, had been a Liverpool docker and John grew up in an atmosphere of working-class militancy and socialism.
He became the convener of shop stewards at the Garden Island Dockyards and was president of the NSW branch during the 11-week Garden Island strike when the union successfully defended its control of the roster system from the employers.
Labor Concerned About Proposed Penalty Rates Changes
The opposition Labor Party is concerned that Australians will face reduced pay packets next summer if proposed changes to penalty rates are passed by the federal government.
However, the federal minister for industrial relations said Labor has “completely and dishonestly” mischaracterised one part of the proposed changes.
Opposition spokesperson for Industrial Relations Tony Burke said in a media release on Thursday that Labor estimates Australian workers could lose between $840 and $1170 from their next summer holiday pay packets if the federal government’s proposed Industrial Relations bill scraps penalty rates for Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day, and Australia Day.