THE University of Newcastle has told staff they should "start to prepare for a gradual and safe return to campus" if fully vaccinated, despite it having no plans to bring the majority of students back this semester.
National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) Newcastle branch president Dan Conway said Vice Chancellor Alex Zelinsky's Tuesday email to staff and UON's Reopening Roadmap had raised concerns.
"The NTEU has always maintained we support management in adhering to and enforcing the PHO [public health order]," Mr Conway said.
"However [the PHO says] a vaccinated employee can continue to work from home where it is reasonably practicable to do so.
"While staff are welcome to return to campus, they must not be pressured to do so. I have already seen correspondence from Heads of School which, in my opinion, oversteps the mark.
"While COVID and the response to it is a complex issue, management should not further complicate it by creating their own set of rules.
"The PHOs define how and when people should return to campus, and it needn't be more complicated than following those orders."
UONCOVID-19 Lead Brian Kelly said the institution was welcoming staff back gradually "with the ability to work around staff needs, including the ability to work from home".
"It is important that our university has an appropriate and safe number of staff on campus to ensure we can deliver the best level of service for our students and to maintain an effective level of operations. We do have students on campus for some critical face to face teaching as well as research activities that are continuing."
Professor Zelinsky's email said the state reaching the 80 per cent double vaccination rate "provides the opportunity to progress our university roadmap, welcoming more of our staff back to our campuses".
"Fully vaccinated staff, (and those with an accepted medical exemption), should start to prepare for a gradual and safe return to campus," he said.
"If you are returning to campus, you should also be prepared to provide evidence of your vaccination status if asked."
Mr Kelly said staff have been asked to confirm their vaccination status with their supervisor prior to returning to campus, where they will use QR codes and observe the four square metre occupancy rule.
"Our roadmap encourages fully vaccinated staff to return to campus from this point," Professor Zelinsky said.
"However, you can continue to work from home (in line with the PHO) with the approval of your manager. For many staff, this may mean a combination of work from home and work from office arrangements, as we build towards a full return to campus for staff when the state reaches the next major threshold of 90 per cent full vaccination."
Mr Kelly said the institution was following PHOs and the requirements of facilities its staff may be working within.
He said while vaccination was not mandatory for staff and students, UON "strongly encouraged" it unless an exemption applied.
