A(H1N1) suspects get one-week leave proposal

Star: PUTRAJAYA: The Cabinet has decided that employees in self-quarantine for suspected influenza A (H1N1) will be accorded a week’s medical leave with full pay.
They would have to get a letter from any government hospital or clinic to certify that they had to be quarantined at home for a week, Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam said.
“The letter will then have to be produced to the employer who will accord the employee sick leave,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Dr Subramaniam said the move was in line with Section 60F (bb) of the Employment Act.
Meanwhile, students can delay their registration for the 2009/10 academic session at public universities tomorrow if they have been advised by a doctor and have a medical certificate.
Higher Education Department director-general Prof Datuk Dr Radin Umar Radin Suhadi advised the 40,366 successful applicants registering for entry to the country’s 20 public universities to consult a doctor if they were unwell or had symptoms similar to the influenza A (H1N1).
“They may delay registration if advised to do so by the doctor but they must inform their respective institutions,” he told The Star.
Universiti Malaya vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Ghauth Jasmon said all students would be asked to fill a health declaration form.
Health checks and monitoring would be carried out on both local and international students arriving from high-risk countries, he said.
A Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia official said students would be screened at all residential colleges when they register tomorrow.
Universiti Putra Malaysia corporate communications division head Abdullah Arshad said new students would be screened at the Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Cultural and Arts Centre before they could register at the residential colleges.
Yesterday, 15 cleaners mopped, wiped and scrubbed all floors, tables and chairs at SJK(C) Jln Davidson in Kuala Lumpur.
A professional cleaning company was hired to clean the school in preparation for its reopening today.
Dettol supplied the cleaning products to sanitise all 42 classrooms, along with the halls and toilets.