Since the health screening concerns the safety of all present in the company, the COVID-19 test would not relate to the rights allotted to employees under a clause of “personal freedom.”
Rabat – Morocco’s private sector employees may be subject to COVID-19 testing under the government’s recent policy allowing companies to implement virus screening requirements. According to local law experts, employees who refuse testing may face negative consequences, including job loss.
In an interview with Maghreb Arab Press (MAP), Mohamed Cherkani, a lawyer at the Meknes Bar Association, along with Khalid Boukaich, a professor of social law in Tangier, sought to clear up some of the questions that Moroccan employees are asking regarding their personal freedoms and rights when asked to undergo testing.
According to Cherkani, refusing a COVID-19 test may be considered “serious misconduct,” given the ongoing concern of a novel coronavirus infection’s threat to others. The lawyer confirmed if an employee refuses a test, employers uphold rights to implement consequences such as dismissal of employment, under the support of Article 39 of the Labor Code.
Boukaich concurred that Article 39 stipulates refusing a COVID-19 test can be a “serious fault,” and thus is considered grounds for dismissal from work.
Article 39 of the labor code states that employers will work “to take all necessary measures to preserve the safety, health and dignity of the employees in the performance of the tasks.”
Since the health screening concerns the safety of all present in the company, the COVID-19 test would not relate to the rights allotted to employees under a clause of “personal freedom.”
The law experts concluded that under the circumstance that an employer takes disciplinary action against an employee refusing to be tested, determinations surrounding the case are always subject to the discretion of a judge.
As Morocco eases into reduced lockdown measures, the country remains vigilant in implementing new measures and strategies to continue prioritizing public health and the safety of its population.
Worldwide, debates surrounding human rights and personal freedoms are heating up. Many are expressing concern over current measures to manage the global pandemic and visions of a new world order.
In April, at the height of the country’s strictly enforced lockdown, Morocco’s permanent ambassador to the United Nations office in Geneva, Omar Zinber, said that Morocco’s efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19 align with UN human rights guidelines.
