Ex-Sunshine Coast police admin worker Dhana Clarke fails to get reinstated

A Sunshine Coast police staff member has fought against her dismissal from the service over mandatory Covid vaccinations while bizarrely asking for $75,000 for her court appearance.

A Maroochydore Criminal Investigation Branch administration worker has taken the Queensland Police Service to the The Queensland Industrial Relations Commission. Picture: Patrick Woods.

A Sunshine Coast police admin worker has failed to be reinstated after refusing to get vaccinated during the height of the pandemic.

Dhana Martine Clarke took the Queensland Police Service to the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission following what she alleged was an unjust dismissal when she refused mandatory Covid-19 vaccinations.

As a Maroochydore Criminal Investigation Branch admin officer, Ms Clarke was found to have disobeyed the direction following the outbreak of Covid-19, which applied to all “frontline staff members or frontline support staff members”.

In her decision in early February, Industrial Commissioner Rosyln McLennan found Ms Clarke did not comply with the directive during her application to the commission.

Dhana Clarke was an administration worker at the Maroochydore Criminal Investigation Branch. Picture: AAPImage/David Clarke

Ms Clarke’s application predated a landmark decision by the Queensland Supreme Court on February 27 which found former police commissioner Katarina Carroll’s direction for mandatory Covid-19 vaccinations was unlawful under the Human Rights Act.

Tribunal documents say Ms Clarke did not receive any doses of the vaccine following the direction and did not seek an exemption even when the directive’s dates were extended.

Commissioner McLennan said police alleged Ms Clarke’s refusal fell within the ground of “misconduct”. She was later dismissed on April 12, 2023 however she lodged a

a reinstatement application with the Commission.

In tribunal documents, it was stated while police officers were categorised as front line workers, many staff members worked close with cops, interacted with community members in public facing roles and were “mission critical”, such as staff at Policelink, fleet maintenance facilities and more.

QPS alleged Ms Clarke's refusal to follow a “lawful direction” fell within the ground of “misconduct”.

Ms Clarke took the Queensland Police Service to the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission. Picture: Glenn Campbell

A back and forth ensued between Ms Clarke and the QPS through written submissions, where at one point Ms Clarke challenged the validity of one of their claims before requesting $75,000 for her court appearance, the documents she produced and preparation for the proceedings.

While Ms Clarke did not submit why the proceeding should not be dismissed, she rather produced three reasons as to why her dismissal was unfair.

These were how the demand to be vaccinated breached her employment contract and claimed she worked for a for-profit organisation with an ABN which she did not agree to be a member of.

She also claimed she received flu shorts at work “under coercion” which equated to her being an employee “for life” in line with work health and safety issues.

QPS stated in tribunal documents that each of those grounds did not rationally correlate with her dismissal and rebutted her claims.

Commissioner McLennan found Ms Clarke did not comply with the order and raised no logical arguments in support of her application, but rather raised arguments which were “irrelevant and misconceived”.

She found at the tribunal the application had “no reasonable prospect of success” and was prepared to hear the parties for costs.

The application was dismissed.