Covid-19 Self-testing is Mandatory for Greek Tourism Workers

Employees in Greece’s tourism sector are among those that must undergo mandatory self-testing for the coronavirus (Covid-19) once a week, the Greek government announced recently.

The announcement follows an update to a joint ministerial decision concerning the mandatory self-testing of employees in the private sector.

Tourism sector

According to the update, published recently in the Greek Government Gazette, self-testing will be mandatory once a week for employees in the Greek tourism sector including those who work in:

– hotels and similar accommodation facilities
– lodges and other short stay accommodation facilities
– campsites and businesses that have facilities for campers
– travel agencies
– businesses that offer organized travel services
– businesses that offer booking services and related activities.

Other private sector employees that must have a negative self-test result – once a week – before arriving to their workplace are those employed in retail; transport (land, coastal shipping, aviation, etc); food and beverage stores/establishments; financial and insurance activities; cleaning services; personal service activities (hairdressers, barbershops and beauty salons); driving schools; tuition and language centers; training and certification providers; foreign language training institutes; kindergartens and nurseries.

All employees will receive their self-test kits – free of charge – from local pharmacies once a week.

Procedure

Before going to work, private sector employees must take their self-test at home and then register the result on the Ergani (national employment monitoring system) online platform that can be accessed through the self-testing.gov.gr website by using their AMKA (social security) number.

If an employee has a negative result, they can go to work as usual after registering it on the platform.

However, if someone tests positive they must undergo a second test at a testing facility (free of charge if it is a state health facility) and then self isolate until the result comes out. If the result is positive again the employee will be excused from work to complete a mandatory quarantine.

The government has announced that employers will by fined if workers are found working without having undergone a self-test or not having registered the result on the Ergani platform.

The mandatory self-testing of employees is part of Greece’s Covid-19 self-testing strategy which aims to detect asymptomatic cases.