A teacher at a Hoppers Crossing school and two Port Phillip Prison staff members are among a group of people who have challenged the state’s mandatory COVID-19 vaccination directions at the Supreme Court.
The case was heard by Justice Melinda Richards on November 3, who delivered her decision last week.
The Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission (VEOHRC) took the case to court on behalf of 129 plaintiffs, including the teacher and prison workers.
The VEOHRC applied for a suspension of the state’s mandatory COVID vaccination directions, for most individuals involved in the case.
Victorian workers in some industries, including residential aged care and healthcare, are required to have a coronavirus vaccination by set dates this year unless they have a medical exemption.
Education facility employees must have their second jab by Monday, November 26.
The court heard that Mark Micallef, a teacher at Woodville Primary School in Hoppers Crossing, “believes that he will lose his job if he does not receive a COVID-19 vaccine”.
Justice Richards said the Department of Education had advised Mr Micallef, who has worked as a teacher for about four years, that he would not be allowed to attend the school campus unless he was vaccinated.
“At the time of making his affidavit, Mr Micallef had booked an appointment to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, as he otherwise risked losing his job,” Justice Richards said.
Two G4S employees at Port Phillip Prison in Truganina, correctional officer Daniels Wells and K9 handler Tanya McEwan, were also included in the VEOHRC case.
Justice Richards said she accepted the plaintiffs “hold real and genuine concerns about the safety and efficacy” of available COVID-19 vaccinations.
However, she said that as the state moves forward, it remained “crucial we continue to protect our health system from being overwhelmed”.
Justice Richards dismissed the VEOHRC application.
A Department of Education and Training spokesperson said: “The take-up of vaccines among school staff has been amazing – they know how important it is to protect themselves and their school communities to keep students in the classroom.”
Woodville Primary School and G4S declined to comment.
Alesha Capone
