Some Good News on the Covid Law Suit Front By Ian Wilson LL.B

The Fair Work Commission is doing, fair work itself! In a recent decision, five unvaccinated Sydney train drivers who were stood down by their employer, Sydney Trains, were found to be wronged, and must now receive backpay, forfeited wages, and restoration of leave entitlements. It is a victory for Covid fighters, but a wider message to employers who act on their own bat, as it was held that there was no government direction to impose their Covid policy upon workers.

Still, the case is a simple on legally, and the real kicker is the actual government directions themselves, when imposed. As I understand the case law, there has been no success in giving a general challenge to this, which would require unwiring existing High Court dicta: Wong v Commonwealth [2009].

https://rebekahbarnett.substack.com/p/unvaccinated-sydney-train-drivers

“The Fair Work Commission has decided in favour of five unvaccinated Sydney train drivers who were wrongly stood down for failing to comply with the Covid vaccination policy of their employer, Sydney Trains.

Sydney Trains must now backpay the five employees, which includes not just forfeited wages, but also restoration of leave entitlements used because of being stood down.

Sydney Trains notified employees that they must receive their first dose of Covid vaccine by 6 Dec 2022, and the second dose by 7 February 2022. It appears that Sydney Trains imposed the Covid vaccination policy on their staff without any government direction to do so.

Sydney Trains’ vaccination requirement for the train drivers was deemed to be unreasonable, noting that train driving is a relatively solitary activity.

Congratulations to Stephen Taylor, Kristen Tripp, Ueligitone Aiono, Nellanisiara Cambridge, and Joseph Galea for standing your ground and setting a precedent.”