By Maggie Shui
Tuesday 26 October, 4pm
Workers in places where vaccine certificates are required for entry will now need to be fully vaccinated, Cabinet decided today.
This includes workplaces such as hospitality venues, gyms and hairdressers.
Non-vaccinated workers in roles requiring vaccination will have a four-week notice period to get vaccinated before their employment can be terminated.
This joins existing vaccine mandates for workers in health, education and the border.
“The more people are vaccinated, the safer we all are,” said Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in a press conference today.
Ardern reiterated that as long as regions have not reached 90 percent vaccination of their eligible population, alert level 3 restrictions will be necessary if unlinked community cases arise. These regions would not be able to move into the traffic light system.
“We need to ensure vaccination rates lift. So please don't wait until cases come to your town or your city, get vaccinated now.”
Tāmaki Makaurau is currently 11,000 first doses shy of hitting 90 percent first dose vaccination rate.
Tuesday 26 October, 1pm
There are 79 new community cases today.
Four of these cases are in Waikato, and the rest are in Tāmaki Makaurau.
46 of these cases are linked and 33 remain unlinked.
87 percent of the eligible population has now received at least one vaccine dose. 69 percent of the eligible Māori population, and 83 percent of the eligible Pasifika population, have had their first dose.
The average age of hospitalisations over the last fortnight is 38. Hospitalisations this outbreak have leaned younger, with only six percent of the 372 hospital admissions among the 65 and over age group.
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