Are We Still Being “COVID-Ethical”?
Throughout the past 18 months we’ve been asked to wear masks, sanitise, socially distance and not meet in large groups. In the past 6 months we’ve been asked to vaccinate. This has been asked of us to (try to) prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus and to take care of ourselves and others. In other words, performing these tasks is the ethical thing to do.
This has been difficult. What we expected to last a month, turned into two and then three and now we’re 18 months into the COVID-19 pandemic, with no clear end in sight. Therefore, it is understandable that people are tired; tired of wearing masks, tired of sanitising at the entrance of every shop, business or restaurant, tired of having our temperatures taken, tired of curfews, not hugging our friends and family and tired of the loss of life and illness that we’ve all had to deal with in the past 18 months. We’re “COVID-fatigued”.
Unfortunately, “COVID-fatigue” has seen people acting carelessly and without concern for others. Examples include breaking curfew, not sanitising, not wearing masks, meeting in crowds and not getting vaccinated.
You only need to listen to the traffic noise from any of our major highways to know that more people than could possibly be essential workers are travelling between midnight and 4am. Why? What could possibly be more important than staying home during those hours and keeping safe? If these people have been at a party and drinking, they pose more danger to society than just COVID-19. At that party, were they wearing masks? How many people were there? How socially distanced were they? Who could they potentially be taking the virus home to? Have the ethics of breaking the law even been considered or has “COVID-fatigue” taken over and have people stopped caring?
Businesses have a greater responsibility. We are responsible for keeping the economy running and we can only do that if our employees and clients are kept safe. However, we are not seeing all businesses complying. I recently travelled to a well-known lodge in northern KZN. Many of the employees were not wearing masks. There were no signs requesting that guests wear masks, so many of them weren’t either. While it might have felt liberating for them to be there without masks, some of these guests were there for a conference and judging from the various number plates they had come from various parts of the country. It would hardly be a surprise if employees and guests had been exposed to at least one case of COVID-19 from just this one weekend. If this is normal operating procedure, how many possible exposures have there been? Given that the travel industry has been one of the industries hardest hit by the pandemic, it makes no sense to not protect the employees and guests by simply following the laws and regulations in place. I don’t feel inclined to take my family there again any time soon.
The same is true in certain shopping centres and restaurants. Walk through a shopping centre and you’ll notice many people with their masks beneath their chins or noses, so that they can talk on a mobile phone, cough or sneeze defeating the object a wearing a mask. Your mask protects me and my mask protects you. Even if you are fully vaccinated you can still contract the virus and pass it on. In order to protect each other the ethical thing for us to do is to wear our masks correctly. Business owners and shopping centre managers need to ensure compliance at their premises.
The ethics of mandating vaccinations are not something that we wish to delve into. However, those that choose to not vaccinate should not then expect to have the same rights and freedom of movement as those who have been vaccinated. They still have a responsibility to protect themselves and others from the virus. Stay home, socially distance, sanitise and wear a mask. Also, don’t be surprised when your employer asks you not to come into the office. If your position does not allow work from home, how businesses and employees are going to deal with this remains to be seen.
Many businesses have had to retrench employees and cut back on their corporate social initiatives due to lack of income during COVID-19. For those who have been relatively unaffected financially or whose businesses have performed better than expected during (or because of) the pandemic, how are you helping? While the government initiatives have been fraught with allegations of financial misconduct, there are some amazing organisations and people who have continued to feed, clothe, educate and house those affected by the pandemic. Gift of the Givers immediately springs to mind. In Cape Town, Garden of Blessings runs a feeding scheme. In Durban, there is the Ubuntu Feeding Scheme and LIV. There are many others. If you cannot afford to donate money, donate your time, donate food or gently used clothing.
No matter how tired we are, the reality is that the pandemic is still here. We need to behave responsibly and ethically. Mask up, sanitise, socially distance and vaccinate and hopefully 2022 will be better for everyone.