COVID-19 FAQs

You are no longer required to report positive COVID cases to Australia
Post. 

People are no longer required to isolate if they test positive to
COVID-19. As with all illness, if your team member is symptomatic, they should
stay at home until they are symptom-free and feeling well. You should encourage
team members to follow local government guidelines at all times. 

There is no requirement to isolate if someone in your household is positive for COVID-19. Team members should monitor for symptoms and test regularly, while continuing to attend for duty as usual. 

There is no requirement to isolate if you have had close contact with a person who is positive for COVID-19. Team members should monitor for symptoms and test regularly, while continuing to attend for duty as usual. 

The best way to minimise your risk is to get vaccinated and obtain your booster shots.

You should also: 

• Stay home if you’re feeling unwell and let your people leader know.
• Stay distant from others – the more space between you and others, the harder it is for the virus to spread. Stay 1.5 metres from others wherever possible.
• Wash your hands frequently. Regularly and thoroughly clean your hands with an alcohol-based hand rub or wash them with soap and warm water to kill viruses that may be on your hands.
• Avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth. Hands touch many surfaces and can pick up viruses. Once contaminated, hands can transfer the virus to your eyes, nose or mouth (including through food you touch without first washing your hands). From there, the virus can enter your body and can make you sick.
• Practice respiratory hygiene. Make sure you, and the people around you, follow good respiratory hygiene. This means covering your mouth and nose with your bent elbow or tissue when you cough or sneeze. Then dispose of the used tissue immediately into a rubbish bin. Doing this will reduce the chances of droplets spreading to others.
• If you have a fever, cough and difficulty breathing, seek medical care. Follow the directions of your local health authority.
• Follow advice given by your healthcare provider. If you are unwell, call your doctor or medical clinic in advance for advice and to give them a chance to prepare for your visit.
• Stay informed. National and local authorities will have the most up to date information on the situation, including in your local area, and so are best-placed to advise on what you should do to protect yourself and others.

We remind you that as usual, if you are unwell with any illness, you should stay at home so you can properly recover. This is even more important now.

If you have COVID-19 symptoms like fever or history of fever, coughing, sore throat and
shortness of breath, fatigue, loss of smell, loss of taste, runny nose, muscle
pain, joint pain, diarrhoea, nausea/vomiting, loss of appetite you should get
tested.  

If you have symptoms and test positive to COVID-19 from either a RAT or PCR test, you
should stay home and immediately contact your people leader.

In most states and territories mask mandates have been lifted in the majority of circumstances, including in workplaces. 

We continue to encourage mask wearing in high-risk settings, including public transport, and you may choose to wear a mask at any time at work. 

The rules around mask wearing may change in the future based on Government directives in response to public health conditions. We will communicate via safety toolbox talks, the Post Office Portal and email announcements when major changes occur and we encourage you to remain up to date with the latest requirements for your state or territory via your state/territory health department website. 

In recognition of the importance of protecting our people and the community whilst performing our role, Australia Post has consistently required medical evidence to support a valid exemption for people who are not able to wear masks if mandated. Whilst public health orders do not necessarily require an individual to provide written evidence as part of police enforcement of mask rules in the broader community, it's a reasonable and lawful direction for an employer to impose a requirement to supply this information. We have required provision of medical evidence of a valid exemption across the country whenever masks are mandated. 

If masks are mandated we will continue to work confidentially with all our people who have valid exemptions on a case by case basis to ensure they and their colleagues are able to continue to work safely. 

For more information on wearing masks, including the correct way to put on and take off a face mask, check our COVIDSafe Plan. 

We will continue to provide masks at all locations where mask wearing is mandatory. You are still permitted to use your own mask if you choose to do so. 

Because droplets from talking, coughing or sneezing can travel up to 1.5 metres, it is important to clean shared surfaces such as counters, desks, keyboards and meeting room tables between users to minimise droplet spread. This can be done with sterile wipes.

Note: Sterile wipes should not be used on hands or monitor screens due to their high alcohol content.

Australia Post has collated its key procedures and controls related to COVID-19 into a COVID Safe Plans. Our National COVIDSafe plan is applicable to all our workplaces and is regularly updated. The COVIDSafe plan takes into account specific requirements in each jurisdiction and also acts as a High Risk COVIDSafe plan as required.

You can provide the COVIDSafe plan in response to any requests about Australia Post’s COVID-19 controls from customers or other external stakeholders. These documents are updated regularly to take into account new requirements so you should always access it via the above links. The plans are also available on our Australia Post website.