Scott Eastwood wins appeal after Christchurch terror attack joke

A tribunal commissioner said ‘cancel culture’ played a role in the sacking of a NSW Corrections worker who joked about shooting Muslims three days after the Christchurch massacre.

A NSW Corrections worker who joked about shooting Muslims three days after the Christchurch mosque massacre has been reinstated after an appeal proved he was unfairly dismissed because of “cancel culture”.

Scott Eastwood, who was employed by Corrective Services NSW for almost 30 years, won his appeal against his dismissal in the Industrial Relations Commission in December.

He had been sacked in July 2019 due to five allegations of misconduct which included racist threatening comments about Muslims, covering a camera, not completing a report, using rude hand gestures and swearing at a colleague.

Tributes displayed in memory of mosque massacre victims in Christchurch in 2019. Picture: Sanka Vidangama/AFP.

Only three of the allegations were sustained by Commissioner Damian Sloan. These included the comments about Muslims, covering a CCTV camera and swearing at a colleague.

“Simply because Mr Eastwood engaged in misconduct does not mean that the termination of his employment must necessarily follow,” he told the tribunal.

“In contrast to the moral righteousness or certitude which currently permeates social discourse, and the apparent prevalence of what is known as “cancel culture”, the law has long recognised that termination of employment might be too severe a penalty, even where an employee has engaged in behaviour that would warrant their dismissal.”

A NSW Corrections worker who joked about shooting Muslims three days after the Christchurch mosque massacre has been reinstated after an appeal.

The tribunal heard that Mr Eastwood told colleagues “he went to a mosque and shot down Muslims” on his holiday and “if Muslims want to come to Australia and live there is only one place for them in the ground”.

He said it was a “poor attempt at black humour” and accepted it was entirely inappropriate as it was made days after the Christchurch massacre where a terrorist killed 51 people.

Mr Eastwood claimed that he covered the CCTV to help find which one was not working properly. However he did say words to the effect of he did not like being watched while working when he was reprimanded for covering the camera.

The final sustained allegation was that Eastwood swore at a colleague using the words “f**k” and “c**t”. He said that he had acted like a pig while swearing.

The tribunal also took into consideration that Eastwood has five children and has financial obligations related to seven children. He and his partner experienced financial hardship during the time he was without work.

His dismissal was officially set aside and from March 15 he will be allowed to return to work at the rank of First Class Correctional Officer.