In line with the Public Service Commission’s mandates for Ministries and Agencies, Government staff entering the TATTE building are required to undergo covid testing.
The result will determine whether the Government worker will be allowed to enter the building.
This morning before 9 am, there was a long line in front of the TATTE building with more than 50 standing in the sun, while some had umbrellas others used shirts over their heads.
They were not exercising social distancing in line with health measurements. Government staff are back to work today as per the Public Service Commission after two weeks of lockdown.
Chair for PSC, Lauano Vaosa Epa stated in a notice the working hours as per our Level 2 conditions in the Guidelines, from 9 am – 2 pm, for the next two weeks and the change in working hours does not apply to Essential Services;
“All Agencies must continue to observe proper hygiene practices, respiratory etiquettes and social distancing in workplaces, with the continuing to practice the mandatory wearing of facial masks, showing of vaccination cards, as well as maintaining a proper record of external visitors to the Office to enable contact tracing, where and if required.”
As a further precaution, currently, arrangements have been made for some government offices to conduct rapid antigen tests (RAT) for all employees prior to entering the workplace and depending on the availability of testing kits from the Ministry of Health, as well as trained officials to administer the tests, other government Offices are encouraged to put in place similar arrangements to ensure the safety of staff.
The TATTE building houses, Ministry of Works, Transport and Infrastructure; Electric Power Corporation, Samoa Water Authority, and Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to name a few.
