Question: I am writing a policy and procedure for the control of infectious and communicable diseases in a community service organisation. Service users range from children to the aged and frail. The general approach to control is to assume the presence of infectious disease and use universal precautions.

It seems reasonable to ask a worker to inform their supervisor that they have an infectious or communicable disease so that an informed decision can be made about whether the worker should interact with clients that may be in an at-risk group.

That works fine for things like cold and influenza, but my understanding of anti-discrimination law in NSW is that an employer does not have a right to demand that an employee report things like hepatitis or AIDs; an employee could have either of these and be unaware they are infected.

Then there are things like rubella, whooping cough and now Ebola where doctors may be required to report to NSW Health and the person with the disease quarantined for a period to prevent spread of infection.

What is the responsibility of a worker when they know they have an infectious or communicable disease?