Businesses hoping COVID staff shortages will end as household isolation rules slashed

For months workplaces have been struggling with a lack of workers due to COVID protocols, with the seven-day household contact rule a thorn in the side of managers.

However, as of 6pm on Friday, people who live in the same household as someone who has tested positive will no longer be required to isolate. They must however, return a negative rapid antigen test (RAT) for seven days and wear a mask indoors for that time period.

Businesses are celebrating the change.

Tamworth Forum 6 Cinema manager Grant Lee had to shut down his business at times in January, due to a lack of staff.

"The news is fantastic, it's going to save us so much, because we had that issue when I got COVID in late January and that put three staff members out straight away, because both my kids work here as well," he said.

"So we went down three staff, we already had staff on holidays and then I got another staff member who got it, that then put another two staff out because her son works here.

"It's [the rule change] going to make life so much easier."

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Mr Lee said the cinema has already purchased a stock of RATs, which will now be distributed to staff for when they are needed.

And it's not just smaller businesses that will appreciate the rule change.

Wests Entertainment Group chief executive Rod Laing said he's had an average of two to four people out every day.

With several businesses to look after, Mr Laing said the constant stream of people unavailable due to isolation rules, has been frustrating.

"The current rules up until when they change on Friday night have been devastating on our business as far as staff numbers are concerned," he said.

"Mainly it's been because they're close contacts and that's taken them out of play.

"Losing on average two staff up to four a day during the festival does leave a hole."

He said the change has come at a good time for Tamworth outlets, with consistently high case numbers in the New England making staff shortage issues worse than in January when the state was at its peak.

"The last six weeks goes way past January, we're in a worse position," he said.

"There are a lot of close contacts, particularly if you had kids home from school with it, parents were then a household contact so really it ruled a lot of our workforce out. So, the changes obviously are welcomed."

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