Liquor store to track and test all unvaxed staff
(CNS): Local wine and liquor retailer, Jacques Scott, has confirmed that it is tracking the vaccination status of all of its staff and plans to introduce regular COVID-19 testing for employees who are not vaccinated at all of its shops. The liquor chain has a store at Owen Roberts International airport and so, since the repatriation flights began, it has had to tell the airport authority about the number of staff working at the airport who have and have not been vaccinated.
CEO Peter Dutton told CNS that as a result, the company is already tracking vaccine status and has been managing the information within the parameters of the Data Protection Law. He said that the store also requires new staff to be vaccinated and is considering asking the remaining unvaccinated permit holders to get their shots prior to renewal, as it is likely to become law in the coming weeks.
The chain of stores is latest in a growing line of employers beginning to take a more strict position on the status of their staff in order to protect the wider workforce and their customers. However, the company is not mandating vaccines for local workers and said it has communicated with staff about the use of the information it collects relating to their vaccine status.
“We have been clear when asking for evidence of vaccination to advise staff that this information will be kept confidential,” Dutton said. “We operate a store at Owen Roberts International airport, and we are regularly being asked by our landlord to notify the numbers of our staff who have access or may have access to the airport complex that have and have not been vaccinated. We therefore have no option but to obtain this information to meet those requirements. Any data given is anonymous.”
Dutton added, “The health and safety of all our staff and customers is of paramount concern to us and we await further directions and guidance from government as and when border controls are relaxed.”
On Monday the country moved into Phase 2 of the border reopening. Travellers returning to Cayman are now allowed to isolate on trust and without the use of electronic monitoring provided they are vaccinated.
This begins to increase the risk of community exposure to the coronavirus, given that the Delta variant is producing more breakthrough infections among vaccinated individuals, who in turn may be tempted to step outside their home isolation before their five days is up.
However, officials stated in a release Tuesday that Travel Cayman, which is responsible for inward travel, is responding to the change by implementing strategies, including physical welfare checks, to ensure that people remain in compliance with quarantine protocols. Individuals quarantining without GPS technology must follow all other prescribed quarantine protocols, such as remaining in their residence for the duration of the quarantine period and receiving no visitors. Contactless supply deliveries are another important requirement.
All unvaccinated travellers are still required to complete 14 days of quarantine, while those whose vaccinations cannot be verified must complete 10 days. Both of these groups will still wear GPS technology.
The use of GPS technology has greatly assisted the continuous monitoring of people in quarantine, according to Deputy Governor Franz Manderson, who heads up Travel Cayman. However, the team has identified most breaches of protocols during spot checks or because of reports from other members of the public rather than through the technology.
From its creation in 2020 to date, Travel Cayman has helped over 21,579 travellers with connections to the Cayman Islands to enter the country for essential reasons and quarantine safely.
Premier Wayne Panton said the phased reopening plan will slowly roll back requirements for inward travel, and as restrictions are reduced the likelihood of the COVID-19 disease re-entering the Cayman Islands community will increase.
The COVID-19 vaccine offers the best protection against the risk that the deadly disease poses to Caymanians and residents of all ages, he said. But practicing COVID-19 prevention protocols, including handwashing, mask-wearing and social distancing, if vulnerable, are other ways members of the public can protect themselves, their loved ones and the wider community.
“The government, with the support of public health officials and the civil service, has put a tremendous amount of planning and preparation into ensuring that we can successfully move through each phase of the plan, which is so important to the economic health of our country,” he said. “Our goal, led by the science, is to guarantee minimal risk to the community and we are continuously reviewing and upgrading our processes with this in mind. My sincerest thanks to the board for everything that they have done to date.”
On Tuesday there were no new cases of virus reported among travellers, and with the vaccination clinics closed Monday, the national rate remains at 68%.
Anyone who suspects an individual has breached quarantine can make a report to the quarantine tip hotline: 943-7233 (943-SAFE)
Any person found guilty of breaching quarantine is liable upon conviction to a maximum fine of $10,000 and up to two years imprisonment.
See the vaccine schedule on the HSA website here.
For more information on vaccines contact the HSA Communications team at
communications@hsa.kySee here for more information on securely verifiable vaccination records.
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Category: Local News
Nice to see an “essential” business taking this step.
Lol
Pfizer’s Covid vaccine is only 42% effective against Indian ‘Delta’ variant while Moderna’s jab is 76% effective, Mayo Clinic study suggests
Horse excrement left by a Troll – provide a link to that study
So now the,WHO Is saying it’s a lab leak by an infected person.
There are so many search engines available to everyone.
CNS: One WHO official said it was “probable”. There are still no definitive answers. This is the most recent article that I could find.
Only a matter of time before the truth be out fully.
Let’s not forget that a few months ago, if you said that COVID 19 was leaked from a lab in Wuhan, you’d be called a conspiracy theorist. Now, there is evidence. Where there is smoke, there certainly is fire.
Who cares. Give it a few years for all the evidence to be sorted and then post if you must.
Its right there on Fox News web page.
Oh geesh, FOX News, now that is a credible source..NOT
CNS..Should not post any of this rubbish and claims unless these people start putting up the sources.
I’m so tired of seeing all the misinformation. It’s just ridiculous.
I wish there was a “We are idiots and proud of it” forum all you nutty anti-vaxers could go to instead of infecting this forum with your insane drivel.
There are no “anti-vaxers”; just people whose narrative is different than yours. They have made choices, just like you.
The unvaccinated are the people who people like you pretend to care about and want to protect.
That’s fine. Just accept you have to live with restrictions and cannot travel.
Yeah, yeah, and there are no flat-earthers; just people who have a different grasp on reality than I do. Care to say how many conspiracy theories you believe in? 5G? Chem trails? Moon landings? 9/11?
You exemplify the only manner in which small minded folk as yourself can marginalise those you disagree with — ad hominem and straw man logical fallacies. I hope you don’t require a definition of those terms.
What you are doing above is the antithesis of adult discussion; it is persecution performed from the perceived strength of numbers. You don’t even do it well, but resort to childish accusations.
I doubt very seriously you could go toe-to-toe with me in a debate in any of the realms of science, particularly virology, microbiology or immunology. I doubt you’ve done even a modicum of medical research, and yet you have the gall to attempt to paint people like me as whackamole conspiracy theorists.
Your wood salad argument is weak and makes wild assumptions. I just asked you some questions, which apparently you’re afraid to answer. I wonder why.
“Narrative is different” – right – the Trumpian ‘alternative facts’
Who? Is that a friend of yours?
A recent study was conducted and it showed that the most ardently anti mRNA vaccine group were those with phd level educations. While the most decrease in hesitancy was found in those with a high school education or less.
“The largest decrease in hesitancy between January and May by education group was in those with a high school education or less. Hesitancy held constant in the most educated group (those with a Ph.D.); by May Ph.D.’s were the most hesitant group.”
https://www.upmc.com/media/news/072621-king-mejia-vaccine-hesitancy
“hesitance” is the wrong word here. Those who decided not to take the jab are not undecided, uncertain or doubtful. Their position is strong and not based on propaganda of any kind.
Ha! Damn lies and statistics. There’s all sorts of statements in that report (which you selectively sampled and poorly paraphrased – no use of “ardently” in the report for example). Really, how many PhD people could there be in any sample to provide meaningful data?
Also in that report: “Those from counties with higher Trump support in the 2020 presidential election showed higher hesitancy”. So do you conclude that PhD people are probably Trump supporters?
Read the details – vaccine hesitancy lowest among physicians and those with higher degrees in sciences – study included self-declared and purchased ‘PhDs’ in areas that have nothing to do with science.
We are the control group doing it for science.
If they say the data given by the employees is anonymous how exactly do they know who to test? Since vaccinated people can spread the virus shouldn’t the testing apply to all? I also fail to see why working in the departure area of the airport puts them at higher risk of COVID.
I suspect the issue is with high volume contact with the public and the much greater potential for unvaccinated people to spread the virus. Then again the airport air system probably circulates air exhaled by incoming potentially infected passengers all over the airport.
Will people please stop repeating the same pointless comments about unvaccinated vs vaccinated and how they should be treated the same! The vaccine are’s are far far less likely to catch or transmit covid than the vaccinated. Vaccinated will also usually have much lower viral loads if they do catch it. This is the same for the delta variant. That is why it’s only fair that vaccinated quarantine for less time (as long as tests are negative) and that unvaccinated face restrictions on travel and what they can do / where they can enter (shops, bars etc.).
Every has known from the start that vaccinated can catch and spread covid still. This isn’t new – was known way before vaccines came to cayman u January. The whole aim of a vaccination programme is to stop a country’s health system being overrun, which we can do when we open if everyone gets jabbed. There is no aim nor will it ever be possible to keep covid out of cayman or stop any hispitalisations and deaths. It’s about it being manageable.
1:44……what is anonymous is the information shared with landlord at the airport. In other words, Jacques Scott reports “We have x number or x% vaccinated” vs “Here is a list of the names of our vaccinated employees”.
They know who to test because they keep internal records. They just don’t share that level of info with the outside party.
If you think that Delta won’t affect the vaccinated, you’re going through some mass psychosis event and living in lala land. Once it’s on island the vaccinated liquor store and supermarket employees are going to get it left and right and you’re going to be scratching your head wondering where it all went wrong.
But they won’t be in hospital or die in 99.9 per cent of cases. They will have a far far lower chance of getting seriously ill than the in vaccinated. No one has ever in the history of covid said vaccinated can’t catch or spread it – we just know it’s the best protection against serious disease.
Why do you people think it’s a new phenomenon that vaccinated can catch covid. We knew that a year ago. Now go and get vaccinated and do your duty like the rest of us.
Unvaccinated are not dying now in 99.9 per cent of cases. I think the government’s quarantine steps should remain as they are. We do not have lockdowns we do not have community transmission it is reckless and unnecessary to open up.
Exactly right.
Interesting to note that they have found a way to do this ‘anonymously’ and in keeping with the data protection law. It would be good if the Informaiton Commissioner could roll this protocol out to the rest of the country to also use.
I assume Jacques Scott woked the Information Commissioner on this as they say they have been having to track the information for a while now and they recently had the data breach problem so I expect the Information Commissioner did a review of all of their practicies at thast time. (Poor Jacques Scott.)
Could this be considered Constructive Dismissal?
The world should be following what Cayman is doing, not the other way around. I wouldn’t lose this coveted position. Oftentimes, we appreciate, when it’s gone.
Lol what a ridiculous statement, you are saying countries like the uk should close their borders entirely, not push vaccination and live in a bubble forever. Economic meltdown. Silly comment. Cayman is the same size as a little town or large village in other countries.
12:13, exactly! We are not even as big as most towns.
The world doesn’t know(or care) that Cayman exists.
It’s only fair, let the people who want to get off the rock go, and return with those who want to be on the rock. Everyone should have the right to chose.
Put all your faith and plans in the vaccine then feel good about the world. Please. But why do you have to make enemies of those who don’t have your faith? What do they take from you? Think on this and then watch as your choices show you your lessons.
Equating faith and science is your problem. I get that the science of vaccinations is not exact, but we’re learning as we go by scientific methods. Faith is the suspension of disbelief based on a framework you wish to be true. There’s a big difference.
Not science, consensus. A lot of reputable people have been silenced when they speak out against the narrative and are not part of the “Big Boys Club”. The flip-flopping on guidance and what works and doesn’t have changed more times than I can count since this all started. Not even the chosen “experts” can stick to what they say. Before you say, “It’s because they’re learning as we go along, and things change.” That proves my point, that without long-term data, there is no way in hell they can assure you it is safe to take the vaccine.
Plenty of evidence – over 4 million dead – to tell you what happens when you don’t.
What do they take from me? Well, first off their refusal to vaccinate stops the theborder opening and the restoration of te tourism industry and support for our finacial services industry. Granted, not them thats closing the border, but if they did get vaccintaed it would remove governments sole remaining condition for opening the birder. Second, but not getting vaccinated they are generating a very real risk that community transmission, when it finally arrives, will be widespread and result in deaths, which will over burden the hospital system shared by the vaccinated and unvaccinated alike for other illnesses and accidents, and likely to result in a lockdown, removing civil liberties from vaccinated and unvaccinated alike. Third, by acting as a reservoir for the disease, they significantly increase the amount of virus circulating (yes I know, vaccinated can get and spread the disease – but way less likely to) and increase the risks to those who through no choice of their own cannot get vaccinated. Choosing not to get vaccinated does impact others, however much you hate being characterised as being selfish. Hope that’s clear enough for you.
Tourism in my view never really employed a lot of Caymanians. There were people that had an easy time of it taking tourists to North sound in their boats but business is business and sometimes things happen. We should be pivoting away from tourism. The finance industry has never done better. What is the compulsion to open the borders to help them? Lower wages? Its never been better for local people. You state it yourself, the open borders will bring death and overburden the health system. Why open that much? keep things as they are until other countries get their house in order. This not a vaccine, it is experimental gene therapy. A vaccine like the measles vaccine means you don’t ever get it. This is not the case with covid and in fact you can catch it vaccinated and die. If vaccinated people are walking around thinking their immune they are more likely to spread it. I am not so sure your vaccine works as intended anyway and you may be lining up for a third booster soon. People are likely to take this therapy once the long term effects are known.
If there aren’t a lot of Caymanians employed in tourism then why is CIG spending millions on the stipend? And many people working in the finance industry are unhappy with the border situation.
excellent question. You won’t get an answer from either CIG or any of the *cough* recipients.
Majority are foreigners.. work permit holder. I know of a bunch of them who have been collecting the stipend while working other jobs
8:37 their refusal to get vaccinated means we are all subjected to very burdensome restrictions! Literally, we are bound by a goal of 80% vaccinated. That is why people care!
Cry us a river.
Deloitte, KPMG, PWC, EY, Walkers, Maples, Harneys….etc. When are you stepping up as well?
After September 9th, vaccinate or get a weekly test (such as the BinaxNOW lateral flow test).
Let’s see if any of these financial services entities steps up. You have been completely unaffected by shutting the border.
They haven’t been unaffected… most staff would be desperate to take a vacation to Europe or the USA and see family for the first time in over a year this summer, it’s not good for employees mental health to be locked in cayman. Secondly, you will find that pretty much all the employees of these firms are vaccinated and were many months ago, trust me I speak from experience here.
They know better as their employees will have a class action suit set up in no time.
It’s pretty difficult to pay for expensive lawyers when you don’t have a job.
That’s what the labour board is for. Unfair dismissal. Also they won’t be able to fire 20-30 % of the staff and just expect everyone else to pick up the slack.
LOL Have you tried that?
10:56, most of the employees at those types of firms are probably already vaccinated!!! Most professionals believe in science. The groups (of adults) refusing vaccines are comprised of primarily manual labor employees….construction is a good example!
Not happening.
Thank you to Mr. Dutton and staff for doing the right thing for the employees, the customers and the rest of our country.
Thank you JS!
5 days quarantine for vaccinated. This doesnt help tourists.
10 day quarantine for non verifiable vaccinated and 14 days for unvaccinated. Doesnt make sense.either vaccinated or unvaccinated,unverified equals to unvaccinated except for antibody test.
Excellent. Great job.
Next the churches?
Just pass it around in the tithing basket.
Thank you Jacques Scott for stepping up!
They are giving an option, they are not mandating it like other companies which is respectable.
Great work team!
Alcohol kills millions of people every year, Time to ban this business for public health reasons.
WHO “In 2012, about 3.3 million net deaths, or 5.9% of all global deaths, were attributable to alcohol consumption.”
Sure. And since it is characterised as a “disease”, it is therefore transmissible to the family. They should join the herd on the Brac bluff.
not all diseases are communicable, so your analogy is simply wrong as well as being distasteful.
What herd on the Brac bluff?
So 3 million dead a year is ok with all the dislikes?
Close the churches first.
Alcohol is not contagious.
Stop grasping for straws and be a part of the solution to lessen the spread of the virus..Go get vaccinated!
Trump did!
Talk to the POC. They are the ones avoiding the vaccine.
This is some B…S… I’m a POC all my friends are POC all ex-pats and we all (20+) had our vaccines between January(Health professionals) and April .. so top making it a skin colour issue, it is more a level of education and discernment issue rather than skin colour or even nationality/immigration status.
Alcohol has killed many more people than COVID ever will.
Don’t those dead count? If you want to get serous about public health take some action and ban alcohol sales. Same with Tobacco, kills millions every year but that’s ok too. Pathetic
Religion has killed many many more. Ban that first then we’ll talk.
It also kills germs and viruses. Drink up to stop COVID.
You know there is a shot you can take that makes you intolerant to alcohol. Maybe we should force this on all people living in the Cayman Islands. If it saves lives we must mandate it.
Alcohol a choice – COVID, not so much.
Pretty sure Jesus invented wine.
Time to ban this business for public health reasons.
The tried that in the United States a while back. It didn’t work out so well. They got organised crime/the Mafia as a result.
We all know 80 per cent of the entire population is not possible. Everyone who wants the vaccine now has it and we have one of the highest vaccination rates in the world. Open up on September 9 so people can live their lives again. Let’s follow the uk and Europe’s lead here:
1) encourage people to be sensible in places with large gatherings and contact with masks, hand washing, distancing etc
2) only let vaccinated people travel abroad from cayman and negative test or 5 day quarantine on return
3) same quarantine for vaccinated people flying in
4) launch an app with the HSA vaccine status easily shown – only allow vaccinated in bars, restaurants, nightclubs, the cinema, and non essential shops
5) have a 2 hour a day time slot and alphabet days for unvaccinated to use essential shops like supermarkets, banks,
Open up and let me buy ivermectin and hcq. I will be the placebo for science against the gene therapy.
Consider NAC and Quercitin also.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33177829/
Because vaccinated people can’t get COVID right.
Whut?
Man are you dense.
8x less likely to contract covid and 25x less likely to be hospitalized or dead if infected. So there’s that…
CDC covid tracker data good up until July 24th.
The CDC stopped tracking asymptomatic cases in vaccinated individuals, they just lump them in with the vaccinated now. Wonder why they did that?
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/health-departments/breakthrough-cases.html
7:23pn…..you miss the point.
Vaccinated persons are far less likely to get it and, if they go, are HIGHLY unlikely to end up as a burden on healthcare!!! That is the key!
Getting it isn’t a big deal. Getting moderately or severely ill from it, and therefore needing medical intervention, is what we need to worry about.
Get vaccinated!
No.
What is wrong with people like you? How is ‘no’ a useful or educated response. Everything the previous responders said is true. And you just wrote ‘no’ to his/her concise and well stated factual statements. Get vaccinated to protect yourself and cayman’s healthcare system from another unnecessary cost and Ned being taken up when we open.
LOT less likely to tho, right? But you knew that, didn’t you. People wearing seatbelts can get hurt in an accident too – again, lot less likely than non seat belt wearers and if they do lot less likely to die or be severely injured, but on your logic we should let accident and emergency fill up with traffic accident victims rather than infringe your personal choice.
Way to go Jacques Scott!
It is about time as it took the PAC goverment to put the pressure on that motivated these companies. Thank you to our wonderful goverment – God Bless these Cayman Islands
A joke you tell. PACT Government is missing in action. No leadership whatsoever. That said, you keep enjoying that Koolaid.
I don’t think the Government can take credit for these companies stepping up but by their leadership, it has encouraged these well known and Cayman operated business to step and do the right thing..To all the owners of these business that decided it was the right thing to do, I applaud you! You are great leaders and great examples of what can happen when we as Caymanians come together.
Well off to Blackbeard’s I go then!
Don’t want your unvaccinated ass in my store anyway!
Running out of choices eh? No Fosters, no ALT, No Jacques Scott..Blackbeard’s and Tortuga will follow soon.
Might be easier just to go get vaccinated and do the right thing for once.
I already make my own wine, beer and hooch. When the sh_t hit the fan, don’t need any of them
I’m sure the quality of your homemade wine fits your personality like a glove.
If there were a designated liquor store exclusively for those who choose not to get vaccinated that store might get a lot of business and the rest of us might breath easier.
It’ll be liquor 4 less.
Joe Ena’s
You don’t think they will follow suit? LOL
Oh my god
Yes?
Brilliant. I’m so happy the supermarkets, alt and now liquor stores are doing the right thing. It was always going to take the private sector to step up and make sure staff and customers who are vaccinated are the ones who rightly can get back to a normal life. Well done,
What the CIG has no balls to do… It takes the private sector to do their work for them.
CIG is beyond worthless.
Vaccinated catch and pass on COVID too. Are you retarded?
Wow. I can tell by your vernacular that you’re not one to read the room.
8 times less likely to catch it, 25 times less likely to be a burden on the healthcare system if they do. Think you are the retarded one if you don’t see the difference.
This is a huge infringement by BIG BROTHER all in the name of just getting more money. These big companies do not care of the regular person but what loads of people flying/cruising in so there bottom line improves for bigger self fulfillment/bonuses. Really getting too much now.
Don’t like it?
Goodbye
Why are we still frittering around about this??? Just round all them up, send them to the Brac and make them work their asses off maintaining the Hurricane Hilton, pool, track, football field and related grounds. They can bivouac in the concession stands. It will take no more than a half dozen guards to direct them.
We should also get all their families, or at least keep eyes on, just in case they are sympathetic. We will feed them the attrition vegetables and meats from the various stores, just before the barge comes in. I’m sure that Water Authority will fund their water needs.
It’s really the best thing for everyone. Trust me, it’s a win-win.
I guess you can only get away with this as satire..Nicely done.
Thank you. I considered it a social experiment. I wondered how many would endorse such a horrific idea.
However, the experiment is a failure, as some have approved having discovered the satire. 😀
Don’t know about that. Given many other comments that are not satire I would say the experiment ultimately failed but can safely predict that we are definitely flirting with the dystopian impulses of more than a few unfortunately…
This was actually kind of a trollish thing to do, and I won’t be doing it again.
It was born of frustration and profound disappointment with some of us. Persecution of a minority has never resulted in unity.
You are a idiot . Really big idiot for saying that Brac statement. Please NEVER come to the Brac, please do us Brackers that favour and stay away.
CNS thanks for including the extra information about the fact if you cannot get to the clinic that they can come to your house to administer the vaccine. No more excuses!! Get the shots!
Well done JS, your commercial customers applaud you.