Spark's covid-19 vaccination approach and compliance

We recently informed you about our Health and Safety Risk Assessment where we identified Suppliers that support Spark’s essential services and environments and how together we can reduce the risks of Covid-19 in these environments.

We also engaged with a number of you for further consultation and feedback which has helped design Spark’s expectations from our Suppliers who have people that work at or visit Spark’s customer sites, Spark buildings, and Spark’s critical operational sites.

Spark Customer Sites

We have recently advised our customers:

• For all Spark customers who fall under the Covid-19 Public Health Response (Vaccinations) Order (the Order) 2021, Spark New Zealand confirms that all of our employees and suppliers visiting their sites will be fully vaccinated’).
• For those customers who do not fall under the Covid-19 Public Health Response (Vaccinations) Order but have requested that any Spark employees and suppliers entering their premises must be vaccinated, then Spark would follow this request (providing it was based on reasonable grounds where there is a high risk of exposure and transmission in these roles).

As a Supplier you may likely be visiting Spark customer sites on behalf of Spark NZ and our expectation is that you will align with the above compliance statements.

Please see additional detail in the attached communications we sent to our customers on Friday 12 November 2021 advising them of Spark’s Vaccination compliance position.

Spark Buildings

We take our role as a lifeline utility and an essential service provider seriously.  Spark buildings fall under two categories, and we are keen to ensure that we continue to be vigilant with our most sensitive and critical environments and stay focused on the safety of our people, suppliers and customers.

Spark buildings:

• All Spark retail stores across New Zealand
• Spark City - Auckland
  
• Spark Central - Wellington
  
• Spark Square - Christchurch
• Other Spark buildings where our people work from, not currently identified below under Spark Critical Operational sites
  

If any of your people work at or visit any of our buildings our expectation is that they will follow Government Covid-19 safety protocols and mandates aligned with the relevant Covid-19 Protection Framework or Alert Level applicable at the time. This includes maintaining social distancing, the use of masks indoors, contact tracing and other hygiene measures such as staying home if you are unwell.

Spark critical operational sites:

• Mayoral Drive - MDR
  
• Airedale Street - ATC
  
• Hamilton - HTC
  
• Hereford Street - CHC
  
• Porirua - PRO
  
• Papakura - PAK
  
• International Sites - WRK, TCT and PCT
  
• All Spark Data Centres 

Our Health and Safety Risk Assessment identified Spark’s essential services employees, who are critical to delivering essential services for NZ, working at the above critical operational sites as ‘category 1 – high risk’ who will need to be vaccinated to reduce the risks of Covid-19 in these areas as much as possible. After a period of consultation, we have now confirmed our decision to require vaccinations for these specific roles and are currently working through the next steps with impacted individuals and teams.  

Therefore, if any of your people work at or visit any of our critical operational sites our expectation is that you will confirm:

• that anyone from your organisation working at or visiting a Spark critical operational site will be fully vaccinated;
• that anyone from your organisation working at or visiting a Spark critical operational site will provide proof of their vaccination status.  Ideally this will be via the domestic “My Vaccine Pass” that is currently in development and being released over the next week or two.

Confirmation of Compliance

We ask that one person from your organisation responds either confirming that you will comply with these requirements or will be unable to comply with these requirements using the link provided in our email dated 15 November. We ask you to complete this by Friday 17th December 2021.

We would ask that if you cannot comply you provide us with reasons for this position at the bottom of the form. Please note that these requirements have been adopted as a policy by Spark so continued access to our sites may be withdrawn under your Supplier Agreement if you are unable to comply.

The vaccination status of our Suppliers and your people and any other personal or health information that Spark receives as part of this process will be stored securely and managed in accordance with the Privacy Act 2020 and the Health Information Privacy Code 2020.

Health & Safety Protocols

Please remember that as our Health and Safety Risk Assessment is an ongoing process, we will continually review and evolve our approach, to meet Government guidelines and best practice.  This may also mean that we could add further sites to Spark’s Critical Operational Sites list, which will be updated regularly on our Supplier website.

To keep playing our integral role as an essential services provider we must continue to uphold best practice protocols and be thinking ahead, so we can keep New Zealanders connected and safe.