INTERNATIONAL. Airports Council International (ACI) World is calling on governments to recognise airport workers – including those employed in retail and F&B – as ‘essential’ in the classifications for COVID-19 vaccinations.
The airports trade body wants them to be among the top priorities as vaccination programmes are rolled out, once the needs of the most vulnerable people and healthcare workers are met.
“As the global roll-out of vaccines commences, it is clear that the most vulnerable in our society and those key healthcare workers who are doing so much to keep us all safe and healthy are prioritised for vaccination,” said ACI World Director General Luis Felipe de Oliveira. “As this crucial group is vaccinated, it is then important that other key groups are prioritised to receive the vaccines so they can support a global recovery from the pandemic.”
In de Oliveira’s opinion, airport workers should be seen, for the most part, as frontline staff who are in contact with the public every day. With this in mind, he said that it is vital to ensure these workers are vaccinated as soon as possible, as it would provide further evidence of the airport industry’s commitment to the health and safety of passengers and staff.
He added: “Aviation will also be a key engine, driving the recovery from the pandemic through the movement of essential goods, including, of course, the vaccines, and through the economic and social benefits that are delivered to the communities airports serve.
“Around 60% of those employed in aviation work at airports so it is important that governments recognise airport workers as essential and are prioritised for vaccination so they can help deliver the recovery that the world needs.”
