Heidi Mercer and family (Photo: submitted)
A petition has been created showing opposition to the new rules that force rotational workers to self-isolate when returning to the province.
A Rothesay woman says they are being punished by the provincial government.
Heidi Mercer’s husband works in Fort McMurray in an effort to support their family.
Under new rules to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, he will have to self-isolate for 14 days when returning home to New Brunswick, “We have a seven-year-old, and she needs to be able to see him. We need to be able to get outside. It’s just not fair if they have to come and self-isolate for fourteen days, they don’t have any time. It’s either they spend 14 days in a hotel away from the family or you all have to self-isolate together.”
She feels it just isn’t right, that some have to choose between family and work.
“There are many families out there that do not have the same opportunities as I do. I stay at home and my daughter is homeschooled. A lot of people don’t have that. They are going to have to shut down their businesses or lose their jobs, just to be able to see their family and it’s not right,” Mercer says.
There have been reports of other families who have made the decision to leave the province because of the new rotational workers rule, but Mercer says she doesn’t have that option.
“We just want the numbers. This is discrimination because they are taking it out on one and not the other. We just want to know how many people are coming into New Brunswick, how many are land, how many are air, who is positive and who isn’t. We need the data and we need Dr. Russell to give us that,” Mercer says.
During a COVID-19 update on Thursday, Health Minister Dorothy Shephard addressed the hardships that travel restrictions have had on workers, including rotational workers. She said she understands that it feels unfair and that it’s been difficult, “But COVID-19 doesn’t have a sense of fairness,” she said. “The problem is not on rotational workers. The problem is that all travellers are susceptible to the virus.”
