Coronavirus Australia: Ballarat Council truck driver sacked for taking sick day to take COVID-19 test

A Victorian truckie called his boss to tell him he needed to get a COVID-19 test. The response from his boss, he says, was shocking.

A Victorian council worker says he was sacked for taking a day off to get a COVID-19 test.

Peter Marrell told news.com.au he was sacked by Ballarat Council after he woke up with “mucus pouring out of my nose”, and told his boss he was going to get tested for coronavirus.

Mr Marrell called his boss at the council and explained his symptoms and said he was going to get tested for COVID-19, and said his boss responded with a “grunt”. A few hours later, he received a phone call telling him he’d been sacked.

The former labourer and truck driver had been with the City of Ballarat as a casual employee for the past 14 months. He said when he asked if he’d been sacked for taking a sick day, he was told the council was making changes.

“I said, ‘Is it because I’ve called in sick?’ They said, ‘No, it’s because we’re downsizing and putting aquatic people in your position’,” Mr Marrell said.

He said when he asked follow up questions he was “warned” not to “push the situation”.

But Mr Marrell is convinced he was sacked for taking the day off to be tested for COVID-19, saying despite the claims from council, he doesn’t know of any other casual staff member being sacked.

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Peter Marrell said he was sacked for taking a COVID-19 test. Picture: A Current Affair

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Mr Marrell said throughout the pandemic he’s been tested for coronavirus three times.

“I was doing it for the safety of my workers and myself,” he said.

“I think they suspected I was trying to have time off, but I don’t get paid for these tests,” Mr Marrell said. He added he didn’t apply for the pandemic leave payment. “I lost money because I have to have so much time off for it.”

After initially telling Mr Marrell he’d been sacked because of downsizing, the City of Ballarat said Mr Marrell had not been performing in his position.

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Mr Marrell worked in the street cleaning team in the Victorian town of Ballarat.

The City of Ballarat said in a statement provided to A Current Affair they’d had two different conversations with a recruitment company about his poor performance and a meeting with Mr Marrell himself on August 8.

Mr Marrell disputes this, saying no meetings about his performance ever occurred.

The statement also claims Mr Marrell “rang in ill following allocation to a non-preferred task”.

“As a result of his poor work performance and poor attendance, Mr Marrell was advised he would not be receiving any further shifts as a casual in the street cleaning team,” it said.

The council said it “actively encourages its staff to have COVID-19 tests if they show any signs of the illness”.

The City of Ballarat reiterated to news.com.au Mr Marrell hadn’t been sacked for taking the coronavirus test.

News.com.au also talked with one of Mr Marrell’s former colleagues, Ed Askari, who said he “works hard” and is a good communicator with “good attendance”.

“I worked with Peter for about 12 months and in my opinion he is a gun, legitimately a gun, he really is a hard working bloke, laid back, he abides by the rules.”