Photo/Illutration Tokyo Women’s Medial University Hospital in the capital’s Shinjuku Ward (The Asahi Shimbun)

Doctors, nurses and administrative staff attached to Tokyo Women’s Medical University are up in arms again, this time over a new policy to withhold pay in cases where individuals contract COVID-19 and take leave after flouting established antivirus procedures.

The latest confrontation follows an uproar last summer in which hundreds of nurses threatened to quit after the university announced it would not pay summer bonuses due to falling revenues because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The union is demanding that the new policy be retracted immediately on grounds it is tantamount to punishing people who become infected with the novel coronavirus.

According to the labor union, the university notified staff on Jan. 28 to strictly follow anti-coronavirus measures, such as wearing goggles and other protective gear while at work. It also called on staff to take meals alone.

The following day, an additional notification stated that paid leave would not be paid if absences from work due to COVID-19 or self-isolation at home after running fevers or displaying other symptoms were found to have resulted from not complying with the university’s request to take thorough precautions against the virus or from “clearly inappropriate behavior.”

In protest, the union pointed out in a Feb. 10 statement that the new policy does not clearly explain the basis upon which university officials determine whether staff members ignored the management’s request or had behaved recklessly.

“There are fears that the university will decide that people other than those who got the virus while working at the hospital did act inappropriately if they got sick,” said one employee.

Another questioned the university's abrupt decision to change the existing rule that stated special paid leave would apply to anybody who contracts COVID-19 or stays home due to fever.

In an interview with The Asahi Shimbun, university officials said they will not base their decision to withhold pay based solely on an individual having contracted COVID-19.

“We set a policy targeting only employees who failed to comply with our request to thoroughly abide by our measures against the virus and ended up heightening the risk of infections,” one official said.

After the uproar over unpaid summer bonuses, the university reversed its position and paid a basic salary of one month in lieu, half the amount of the previous summer.

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