Teacher union wants education workers added to vaccination plan

The union also criticised Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s “apparent announcement” that if Hungary were to suddenly have access to millions of vaccines, the shots would be administered at the regular electoral polling stations. Many of these, PSZ noted, are in schools, which not even parents are allowed to enter right now.

PSZ said it believes teachers should fall within the same category in the vaccination plan as people over the age of 60 who are considered vulnerable to Covid-19. According to the website of the National Public Health Centre, people within this group will be eligible to receive the vaccine after health-care workers and social sector workers.

The union said the vaccination plan contradicts past remarks by the chief medical officer, who had said “those working on the frontlines”, such as health-care workers, would be the first to be vaccinated, followed by those most vulnerable to the virus and public service employees, like teachers.

PSZ also cited United Nations children’s agency UNICEF as saying that those working in the education sector should also receive priority in the Covid-19 vaccination campaigns.

The union demanded that teachers be placed in a priority category within the vaccination plan and for vaccination points not to be set up in schools.