After the Health Secretary confirmed plans to reverse the vaccine mandate for health and social care, the move has been welcomed - but Sajid Javid has been told the "damage has already been done".
The controversial move to implement a requirement for frontline NHS staff to be double-vaccinated against Covid-19 had been criticised by union figures - and some NHS trusts had warned they could face losing hundreds of staff.
Social care staff have required Covid-19 vaccination since November 2021 - and while industry figures are pleased the mandate is being removed, they have said that thousands of staff have already been lost to the profession.
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In a statement on Monday, the Department of Health and Social Care said the "legal requirement for health and social care staff to be double jabbed" was to be removed subject to parliamentary approval and a consultation.
But that those who hadn't been vaccinated should do so as it was a "professional responsibility".
UNISON's regional secretary Clare Williams was among those to welcome the U-turn, but said it had taken too long.
The union represents thousands of nurses, healthcare professionals and care workers around the North East.
Clare said: "This was the right thing to do. But it shouldn’t have taken the government so long to realise the huge mistake it was making.
"Ministers were repeatedly warned the jab rules would cause staffing chaos for the NHS and the care sector but chose not to listen. Unfortunately, much of the damage has already been done.
"Thousands of care workers have been forced from jobs they love, leaving employers struggling. Many staff will also have quit the NHS ahead of this week’s deadline."
In Newcastle alone, more than 40 care home workers left their jobs ahead of the November 11 vaccination deadline last year.
Speaking as ministers debated the decision yesterday, one North East care home manager said the U-turn was "hugely frustrating".
Dawn Esslemont, manager at Eothen Homes in Whitley Bay, said: "It's a bit frustrating. With our staff here at Eothen we've had very high vaccine uptake and we didn't lose lots of staff but I know the sector as a whole has lost a fair few workers.
"Now to go back on that - someone from the Government was saying [social care] staff could come back - but you can bet your bottom dollar these people will have got other jobs. They might also be nervous - what if the rules change again?"
Vic Rayner, chief exec of the National Care Forum, added: "The government has consistently chosen to ignore the advice of those who work in the care sector, and has steam rolled through a chaotic policy with long term detrimental impacts on those who work in care homes and receive care and support.
"Care homes have been the unwitting guinea pigs through the implementation of this policy, and the impact on people must not be swept under the carpet."
Asked about the decision, Dame Jackie Daniel - chief exec of the Newcastle Hospitals NHS Trust told BBC Radio on Monday : "It's a balance of risk but I think mandating vaccines is always a difficult position.
"What we found right throughout the vaccination process is that by providing staff with more information and working with them, we've had huge success.
"I think that's a much much better approach. We don't get these ultimatums and these standoffs - and I think we still want to aim to get every member of staff vaccinated."
Reacting to the news, South Shields MP Emma Lewell-Buck - who has campaigned on the issue - added on Twitter: "The U-turn on mandatory vaccines for NHS and care staff is the right decision, but the policy was flawed from the very beginning.
"Good public health should always be about encouragement and support, not threats, force and coercion."
Speaking to the House of Commons, Sajid Javid said: "The evidence shows that the risk of presentation to emergency care or hospital admission with Omicron is approximately half that of Delta. Given these dramatic changes, it is not only right but responsible to revisit the balance of risks and opportunities that guided our original decision last year.
"While vaccination remains our best defence against Covid-19. I believe it is not longer proportionate to require vaccination as a condition of deployment through statute."
