A Department of Health IT manager who refused to provide proof he was vaccinated against COVID-19 has lost his bid to prove he was unfairly sacked, the Tasmanian Industrial Commission has found.
The man worked as a systems support manager on the department’s eHealth program until he was dismissed in April 2022, according to a decision published this month.
During the pandemic, the director of public health ordered all department employees to be sufficiently vaccinated or hold a valid medical exemption.
The commission noted staff who had neither could not work – and both the employee and the department risked a fine or jail if they did.
The man provided neither proof of vaccination nor an exemption.
The department repeatedly asked him to comply over several weeks, the commission found.
When he failed to respond, he was stood down without pay from October 31, 2021 and given a direct order to comply. He still refused.
An investigation found he had breached the State Service Code of Conduct by failing to follow a lawful and reasonable direction and his employment was terminated in April 2022.
The man challenged the sacking in the commission.
He did not dispute that he had failed to comply, but instead challenged the validity of the health order and the department’s direction, raising several arguments the commission described as “meritless”.
The commission found the department had a valid reason to sack him.
“This case is not about COVID-19. It is not about vaccinations. It is not about privacy law,” it said.
“It is about whether the impediment to [the employee] performing his duties and his failure to comply with his employer’s direction justified his termination.”
The commission found the health order made it unlawful for him to perform his duties, leaving the department unable to keep him in the role.
It also found the sacking was not unfair, noting he had been repeatedly warned, offered help and treated the same as other non-compliant staff, some of whom were also dismissed.
The commission also noted the man chose not to give evidence before dismissing his application.
