‘Unlawful’ Covid jabs: Qld Health could be hit with thousands of compo claims
Queensland Health has ruled out appealing a landmark Supreme Court ruling on mandatory Covid vaccines leaving the government open to thousands of potential compensation claims.
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Queensland Health has ruled out appealing a landmark Supreme Court ruling on mandatory Covid vaccines leaving the government open to thousands of potential compensation claims.
Queensland Health has not committed to compensating employees stood down for failing to comply with the jab orders that were found to be “ineffective” and “unlawful”.
But have reconfirmed anyone who lost their job following the mandate was welcome to reapply for their position.
It comes as the Nurses Professional Association Queensland told The Courier-Mail its members were still being stonewalled.
The landmark case saw 74 police and QAS staff win their two-and-a-half-year legal battle against the state government last month, with Supreme Court Justice Glenn Martin finding Queensland Health’s former director-general John Wakefield failed to prove his mandate was a term of the paramedics’ employment under their contracts.
He ruled Dr Wakefield’s direction “was ineffective”.
The bombshell court decision is likely to pave the way for thousands of other stood down workers to take on the mandates in court on the grounds of human rights breaches.
In a statement Health Minister Shannon Fentiman said she had not been informed of any compensation decision.
“I have not been advised of any decisions regarding compensation, following the Director General’s decision today, not to appeal,” she said.
Queensland’s richest man Clive Palmer has previously said he would look at backing a class action against the state government and seek to recoup the $3m in legal costs he contributed in the case.
In a statement Queensland Health confirmed they would not appeal the Supreme Court decision.
“The judgment confirmed Queensland Health properly considered human rights when making the Queensland Ambulance Service direction and that limitations on human rights were reasonable and justifiable in response to the Covid-19 pandemic,” a Queensland Health spokesman said.
The Queensland Health spokesman emphasised that the Supreme Court decision has no impact on doctors, nurses, midwives and other health service and Queensland Health employees.
“Anyone who left Queensland Health and the QAS because they did not want to take a Covid-19 vaccine is welcome to reapply for roles in the organisation,” he said.
But the Nurses Professional Association Queensland told The Courier-Mail that their members are still being stonewalled from returning to work.
“Despite all the promises from Health Minister Shannon Fentiman and her Director General that they would love nurses to come back and save lives in a health crisis, her department is still refusing to rehire terminated nurses.
“Since the promises we have been informed by a nurse that due to her disciplinary action, they could not offer her a position,” NPAQ secretary Kara Thomas said.
“In the same week, another nurse who remained suspended received a letter from the department saying she may have the right skills and experience and to please apply, only to then receive a threat of termination letter. The left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing,” she said.
Queensland Health outlined that the mandate was made based on thorough advice from the Chief Health Officer John Gerrard and considered the health and safety of staff and the public.
“The direction was always intended to be a temporary safeguard in response to a global health emergency. The Covid-19 pandemic is over, our vaccination rate has increased significantly, and society is accustomed to living with the disease, which is why we repealed all vaccination employment directions in September 2023,” the spokesman said.
Originally published as ‘Unlawful’ Covid jabs: Qld Health could be hit with thousands of compo claims
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