On Tuesday, the Secretary for Public Service, Bojrazsingh Boyramboli issued a circular informing civil servants in general that the Electronic Time Recorders (ETR) will be reintroduced from September 1 next. From this date, the attendance of the civil servants at work will again be recorded electronically instead of manually.
However, heads of departments and supervisory officers of the various ministries and departments are advised that a strict health protocol must be followed for the use of these devices. For example, during the peak hours of 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., the machines must be disinfected every thirty minutes. Social distancing must also be observed when there is a queue in front of the machine.
Officials are also advised not to touch any other part of the machine besides the fingerprint scanner in order to avoid direct contact with the machine. Staff members, who are unable to electronically register their attendance at work, are advised to contact the Human Resources Department to register their attendance.
SPS advises department heads to have these devices disinfected with alcohol-based disinfectant (70%). Staff members are advised to take their temperature after using the machine. It is also advised to the civil servants to use the hand sanitizer after having used the machine to register their presence at work.
It should be noted that the presence of electronics had been put on ice in the past after the fear expressed by the civil servants against a possible contamination of the Covid-19 virus after using the fingerprint scanner.
