RMIT lecturer sacked after facing criticism over marking style

An RMIT University lecturer who faced criticism over his marking style and said attending class was like “going to war” has lost a bid to overturn his dismissal.

RMIT University's Swanston Academic Building in Melbourne CBD. Picture: David Geraghty

An RMIT University lecturer who wrongly marked 57 students and said attending class was like “going to war” has lost a bid to overturn his dismissal.

Engineering lecturer Dr Amir Reza Zokaei Fard told a university performance review panel that “the students are waiting to kill me. You kill me and they get their free pass”.

Dr Fard spent around one year on paid personal leave out of 18 months during 2020 and 2021, submitting only general medical certificates saying he was unfit for work.

He was sacked in December 2021 for serious misconduct for refusing to attend three independent medical examinations ordered by the university.

Fair Work Commissioner Tanya Cirkovic said the request for Dr Fard to attend the medical examinations was lawful and reasonable, and his refusal was a valid reason for his termination.

The ruling is being seen as a major finding asserting the right of employers to sack workers while on sick leave if they don’t comply with reasonable requests to provide sufficient evidence of their illness.

Dr Fard had been with the university since 2001, but problems started at the beginning of semester one 2020.

RMIT University buildings in Melbourne CBD.

This was when Dr Fard assessed a large group of students as “not yet competent” – a move the university said was a “remarkable and unprecedented event”.

His marks represented a “significant anomaly” as the pass rate at the time was 60 to 80 per cent, according to the program co-ordinator in Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering.

Fifty-seven students had their marks changed to “competent” after review from other teachers.

After this, Dr Fard went on a period of paid personal leave that lasted from June to November 2020, submitting medical certificates saying he was unfit for normal work primarily because of workplace issues from semester one.

He recommenced teaching in Feb 2021 but continued to face criticism over his marking style and complaints from students, which led him to claim all the students were against him.

He told a departmental review meeting that “when I go to class I am going to war. The students are waiting to kill me. You kill me and they get their free pass”.

Dr Fard started a second period of personal paid leave from May to December 2021 and refused three times to attend an independent medical examination requested by the uni.

He finally said he was willing to attend an examination, but only when he was ready to return to work.

Commissioner Cirkovic said Dr Fard “cannot remain on sick leave for a lengthy period, provide generalised information as to an unspecified medical condition and refuse to communicate with the Respondent, or alternatively choose to communicate selectively”.

Lawyers from Harwood Andrews” said the case was a “big win for employers managing long-term and unspecified absences from difficult employees who are failing or refusing to follow directions for attending independent medical examinations or providing medical information”.