UAE: Fortnightly Covid-19 PCR tests mandatory for unvaccinated employees in five sectors

Employees of companies operating across five business categories, who have not taken the Covid-19 vaccine, will be required to undergo a mandatory PCR test every 14 days, the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation has confirmed.

This directive comes into force starting March 28, 2021, and covers sectors such as hotels, restaurants, transportation and health, as well as social and individual activities related to laundries, beauty salons and barbershops, official news agency WAM reported.

#MOHRE calls upon establishments to require their unvaccinated workers to take a PCR test every 14 days, effective as of March 28. The activities include hotels, restaurants, transportation, laundries, beauty salons, & hairdressers. pic.twitter.com/XHKpafgAVx

— MOHRE_UAE وزارة الموارد البشرية والتوطين (@MOHRE_UAE) March 22, 2021

A circular issued by Nasser bin Thani Al Hamli, Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation, said the decision, made in coordination with the National Emergency Crisis and Disasters Management Authority (NCEMA), is part of the measures taken to curb the spread of the contagion, and preserve employee health.

The Ministry also requested all private sector entities to encourage their employees to get vaccinated and to coordinate with authorities to ensure that their employees get access to the vaccine doses.

The UAE reported 1,871 Covid-19 infections on March 22, raising the nationwide case count to 442,226, while the death toll stands at 1,445. Meanwhile, 75,957 doses of the vaccine were administered in the preceding 24 hours, the country’s health ministry confirmed yesterday.

A total of 7,374,725 vaccination doses have been administered across the country thus far.