Vaccinations for childcare, kindergarten and school workers

Childcare and school staff sit in the highest-exposure occupational group for several vaccine-preventable diseases. Children carry and transmit a range of common pathogens, and staff exposure to coughs, runny noses, vomit and skin contact is part of the job. Vaccination doesn’t prevent every illness but it does the heavy lifting on the serious ones.

The core list

• MMR, two documented doses or serology evidence of immunity. Measles outbreaks in school settings are a recurring problem.
• Varicella (chickenpox), two doses or evidence of immunity. Adult chickenpox is far more severe than childhood.
• dTpa (whooping cough booster), within the last 10 years. Adult pertussis is the main reservoir for infant infection.
• Annual influenza vaccination, strongly recommended every year.
• COVID-19, per current ATAGI advice.
• Hepatitis A, recommended for staff working with nappies or in high-need settings, where toileting accidents are common.

Special-risk circumstances

Staff caring for children in special-needs settings, or where children may have additional health vulnerabilities, often benefit from additional vaccinations including hepatitis B. Speak with your employer’s WHS officer or your immuniser.

Why your record matters for enrolments too

Under Victorian No Jab No Play regulations, childcare and kindergarten services must check children’s immunisation status at enrolment. Many services also keep a register for staff and contractors, particularly during outbreaks. Pull your AIR record from myGov so you can hand it over without delay.

Free or paid?

• Annual flu shots are often workplace-funded under a school’s wellbeing program.
• NIP-funded vaccines (where eligible) are free regardless of occupation.
• Catch-up MMR is free for Victorian adults aged 20–59, see our MMR catch-up post.
• Other vaccines may be charged at the private price.

Read about our workplace clinics if you’d like to organise a clinic for a whole staff group.