Several unvaccinated staff at an Ontario jail have been placed on unpaid leave amid a COVID-19 outbreak at the facility.
Under the Ontario Public Service’s safe workplace directive, employees at correctional institutions who are not fully vaccinated are required to complete regular antigen testing.
However, due to a recent public health order issued by Halton Public Health, the antigen testing is no longer accepted as a substitute for being vaccinated for those who work at the Maplehurst Correctional Complex in Milton, Ont.
The Ministry of the Solicitor General says the public health order means all unvaccinated employees and those who refuse to disclose their vaccination status have been placed on temporary unpaid leave pending the resolution of the outbreak and/or the local public health unit’s orders.
The ministry did not say how many staff are affected, citing security reasons.
The latest provincial data shows that there were 36 active cases of COVID-19 among inmates at the Maplehurst Correctional Complex on Dec. 1.
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