On Wednesday, Westpac announced a new pilot vaccine program within areas of Sydney most impacted by the current COVID-19 outbreak, with employees in the western and south-western suburbs given the option to be vaccinated on-site.
“Designed in partnership with the Federal Government’s COVID Shield Taskforce, and complementary to existing government vaccination programs, the vaccination hubs will provide employees and their households easy access to the AstraZeneca vaccine in each of the eight most impacted LGAs,” the bank said.
Westpac chief executive Peter King said mass take-up of the vaccine was the quickest path back to normalcy for the city.
“We are committed to doing what we can to get more people jabbed and the vaccination rates at the levels they need to be for lockdowns to lift,” Mr King said.
“With around 10,000 Westpac employees living in the eight most impacted Sydney LGAs, it is a heartland area for our organisation.
“For employees who continue to attend a work site, such as a branch, having access to these pilot vaccination hubs will make it easier for them to balance the demands of work, home life and being in lockdown, while prioritising their health and getting vaccinated.”
CBA also revealed it would set up an initial vaccine hub in its Parramatta branch from Monday, 9 August, with further sites to come across the worst affected areas in Sydney.
“To start with, we have access to the AstraZeneca vaccine and we anticipate over time being able to supplement that with Pfizer when there is more supply available,” CBA CEO Matt Comyn told the ABC on Wednesday.
“We are obviously strongly supportive of the vaccination rollout and we have also seen a lot of demand from our people to have access to the vaccine. It is a voluntary and informed individual consent decision, but we do anticipate that it will be widely taken up by our employees around the country.”
The news comes following NAB’s announcement that it would explore using its major buildings as hubs for staff to get vaccinated, as part of the drive for Australia to reach a 70 per cent vaccination target.
