Hundreds of cops, staff, launch class action against State Government over Covid-19 vaccine mandate

Hundreds of police, staff and ambulance officers are taking part in a huge class action against the state government’s Covid-19 vaccine mandate, announced by the former police commissioner.

Former Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll announced the vaccine mandate in 2022. Picture: Dan Peled

Hundreds of police and staff – sacked, suspended or still employed – are launching a mammoth class action lawsuit against the State of Queensland, claiming Covid mandatory vaccination directions were “coercive and devastating”.

The action is also on behalf of Queensland Ambulance Service officers.
Billionaire Clive Palmer is funding the landmark lawsuit, filed on Friday, after the Supreme Court this year ruled the police service vaccination order was unlawful.

Former Commissioner Katarina Carroll announced a vaccine mandate directive in September 2021 and officers faced suspensions or sackings for not complying.

A number of police challenged the directive in court and in December 2022 the directive was revoked but staff remained stood down and suspended.

In February this year 74 police and QAS staff won their legal fight against the directives with Supreme Court Justice Glenn Martin finding that the Queensland Police Service directive was unlawful and the Queensland Ambulance Service directive was ineffective.

Former Queensland Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll. Picture: Dan Peled

More than 200 officers and civilian staff are part of the claim.

The new lawsuit filed on Friday includes former specialist officer Senior Constable Luke Jones, who was suspended from his role in 2021 and then sacked this year for refusing to be vaccinated.

He said he estimates he has lost more than $400,000 in wages and super as well as opportunities to be promoted. He said he had been fighting to get his job back.

“When the Supreme Court found in February that those mandate directions were unlawful, it gave me so much hope,” he said.

“It was what I’d desperately been waiting for … I thought common sense had finally prevailed.

“But I’m still in limbo – unfortunately I’m one of those officers desperately trying to return to work at a time when the QPS is being forced to recruit overseas.”

Mr Jones said he didn’t take the vaccine because his fitness and health were always important to him and he wanted more detailed and researched information before making a decision.

Lawyers representing the class action say the claim seeks to remedy the “many wrongs” that came from the unlawful mandates, claiming misfeasance in public office, negligence and breach of statutory duty.

It is claimed that Direction 12 and Direction 14 (which replaced it) were not compatible with human rights, and that the Commissioner failed to properly consider human rights.

Former Senior Constable Luke Jones is part of the class action.

Solicitor Justin Sibley, from Sibley Lawyers, is representing the class action, as well as firm Alexander Law.

“The action claims that the Commissioner of Police did not fulfil her duties including to not unreasonably limit the human rights of QPS members, not just that she did not properly consider their human rights, resulting in harm and damage to police officers and civilian staff,” Mr Sibley said.

Mr Sibley said he wasn’t able to comment on individual challenges being made by some of the people trying to return to the police service.

“What the QPS did to all its staff, including those who complied under coercion, was unlawful,” he said.

“Those who are still outside of the police because they were wrongly terminated, are having that wrong perpetuated.

“The fact officers stood up for their human rights, and were treated so poorly, could be

perceived to be a stain on the history of the service.

“The devastation caused to those who did not buckle to the duress has been immense, as was the impact on many police who succumbed to being vaccinated under threat of losing their jobs.

“It is very unusual to strip police of their pay while they are suspended pending a discipline

finding. Yet these police and civilians were given a week to show cause why they shouldn’t be suspended without pay, and despite their objections on the basis of human rights violations, they were mostly suspended without pay.”

The law firm said Mr Jones was among six sacked police officers fighting to be reinstated in the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal, with a two-day hearing set down on November 11.

Mr Sibley said the police service was fighting the applications on the grounds they were filed outside of the 28-day statutory review time frame.

Another 14 sacked officers, filed within the statutory review time frame, are still progressing through the QCAT process.

The action was on behalf of police and ambulance officers. Mr Palmer previously funded a successful challenge to the government’s mandates on behalf of frontline workers.

“The Miles Government must be brought to account,” Mr Palmer said.

“Hundreds of millions of dollars in damages are owing to the public service employees whose human rights were trampled.

Billionaire Clive Palmer is funding the landmark lawsuit. Photo Steve Pohlner

“There is no question of liability given the Queensland Supreme Court’s ruling in February that COVID-19 mandates breached the human rights laws of frontline workers, a decision the Queensland Government did not challenge.

“Steven Miles and his union mates cannot keep sweeping this under the carpet. Queenslanders must bring him to account in tomorrow’s state election.”
A Queensland Police Service spokesperson said that while they were unable to comment on any current legal proceedings, they recognised officers and staff who complied with the former Commissioner’s covid directions to protect their fellow Queenslanders.

“The Supreme Court found that the former Commissioner did not properly consider human rights as required by the Human Rights Act 2019 when issuing the directions, and that this was the sole basis on which the directions were unlawful,” the spokeswoman said.

“The Court was very clear that this finding did not mean the Directions were invalid.

“The Court also found that, on a proper consideration of human rights, the requirement to be vaccinated was reasonable in the context of a global pandemic.

“As such, the QPS maintains it was appropriate for those members of the service to be vaccinated.”

Originally published as Hundreds of cops, staff, launch class action against State Government over Covid-19 vaccine mandate