Four new cases lift NZ's swine flu toll to 23

Four more cases of swine flu have been confirmed in New Zealand, bringing the total number of cases to 23.

One of the today's confirmed cases involved a Canterbury woman who arrived in Auckland from Chile on flight LAN801 on June 4.

Canterbury Medical Officer of Health Alistair Humphrey said the woman had the unpleasant symptoms of the flu but was not seriously unwell.

Passengers near the woman on the flight to Auckland were being contacted.

The three other new cases were from Wellington and included two who were close contacts of two Wellington people confirmed as having swine flu yesterday after travelling together from Los Angeles to New Zealand on May 31.

Of the confirmed cases, eight were still in isolation while the rest had recovered. The confirmed cases have been in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Hawke's Bay.

The Ministry of Health said they were also watching 10 other probable cases and 103 suspected cases.

It said doctors were reporting an increase in the number of people with flu symptoms, but these were generally winter colds and seasonal flu.

Director of Public Health Mark Jacobs urged anyone who believed they had swine flu to phone a doctor rather than visit a medical centre or hospital.

"When someone turns up to see their GP without phoning first, and is infectious with influenza A (H1N1) there's potential for the virus to spread to others in the waiting room," Dr Jacobs said.

This included people with flu symptoms who had either returned from overseas in the past week or were close contacts of people with confirmed swine flu cases.

"This week we have had to isolate members of the public who were in a waiting room, along with staff from medical centres who came into close contact with a person who is now a confirmed case," Dr Jacobs said.

Meanwhile, employers have responded to a union call for employers to foot the bill for workers quarantined because of swine flu.

Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union (EPMU) national secretary Andrew Little said yesterday quarantine came with significant costs to workers and that those should be met by their employers if the exposure was work-related.

"We are currently following up on four cases in which EPMU members have been quarantined following workplace exposure and are not being properly compensated for the losses they are incurring as a result," Mr Little said.

However, Employment Services Manager for the Northern Employers and Manufacturers Association David Lowe said employers did not have the resources to cover all the costs.

"...Andrew Little's call for employers to pay all the costs of employees unable to come to work because of swine flu are extra terrestrial," Mr Lowe said.

"Mr Little said employers should pick up their employees' swine flu costs, though welfare for events like this is a reason we all pay our taxes.

"Of course employers will do the right thing by providing the agreed levels of paid sick leave and many may well go further but suggesting it be mandatory is irresponsible."

- NZPA