A further 1,392 COVID cases have been announced this evening.

This morning, there were 288 coronavirus patients in Irish hospitals – a 12% decrease on this day last week.

There were 73 in ICU – up six on yesterday and 24% on last week.

The five-day moving average has increased slightly to 1,313.

The COVID-19 five-day moving average. Image: Newstalk

It comes as the Irish National Teacher’s Organisation said a “system failure by the HSE” had led to a “really, really difficult beginning to the school year.”

He said the HSE failed to put the supports in place for schools to reopen safely, while the Department of Health failed to convince people not to send symptomatic children into school.

Meanwhile, he said there should be no change to close contact rules for schoolchildren until more data is available.

Yesterday, NPHET recommended a change that would see children designated close contacts no longer needing to isolate or get tested unless they were symptomatic.

Meanwhile, the Government has confirmed that employers cannot ask staff about their vaccination status as they return to the workplace.

Government advice on working from home will change from Monday and this afternoon, the Tánaiste Leo Varadkar published the updated Work Safely Protocol.

In a statement accompanying the protocol, the Government said: “As vaccination is not mandatory in Ireland, and there are no plans to make it so, employers cannot currently require staff to reveal their vaccination status.”