Queensland Teachers’ Union warns vaccine mandate may lead to ‘significant disruptions’

Schools have been told to brace for “significant disruptions” due to the Palaszczuk government’s vaccine mandate for teachers and school staff.

Queensland schools are set to face “significant disruptions” and potential teacher shortages after a Covid-19 vaccine mandate for all education staff, the state’s teaching unions have warned.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk on Tuesday announced that all private and public school staff must have received at least one dose of a vaccine by December 17 and be fully vaccinated by January 23 – the day before school returns.

Both the government and the Queensland Teachers’ Union (QTU) said they did not know how many of the 60,000 public school teachers had had any doses.

In a message to members, the QTU stated any teachers and staff who had not received their second dose by the cut-off date would likely be suspended by the department, “pending a show cause process”.

“We have advised the department that this could result in significant disruption to the commencement of the 2022 school year given students are due to return to schools the following day,” it read.

Queensland Education Minister Grace Grace. Picture: David Clark

“Members’ working conditions should not be compromised in the absence of sufficient teaching staff due to the mandate.”

The mandate includes administrators, groundskeepers, contractors and volunteers, but would not include parents who need to come on to school grounds. It would also include childcare educators, including family daycare, and after-school care workers.

Education Minister Grace Grace said “all options” were being considered with regards to teachers who refuse to be vaccinated – including potential redeployment – and there would be back-up plans to use substitute teachers if some teachers could not go back into the classroom.

“We’re working to finalise that health directive and everything is on the table in relation to what would occur after the 23rd,” she said.

Ms Grace said she predicted the number of teachers already vaccinated was “very high”, but the department would be “working on that” this week.

Independent Education Union (IEU) Queensland branch secretary Terry Burke said the timing of the announcement would pose “significant challenges” for schools, with the summer holidays looming.

He said the IEU would seek “urgent discussions” with employers on “critical implications”, such as establishing a process to confirm medical exemptions, privacy protections and support for employees such as leave or redeployment.

The Courier-Mail understands that principals have emailed staff to urge them to notify their school leaders if they do not intend to comply with the mandate.

QTU president Cresta Richardson said an “extremely high proportion” of its 48,000 members were already vaccinated, but there would be “unique cases that require individual attention”. Queensland Catholic Education Commission executive director Lee-Anne Perry said the time frame would allow unvaccinated teachers to plan for next year.