Browsing: Coronavirus, COVID-19

Breaching an employer's mandatory COVID-19 face mask rule is a valid reason for dismissal, but employers must clearly warn staff of the consequences of failing to wear the PPE properly, a commission has ruled.

The requirement for certain workers to be vaccinated against COVID-19 can be likened to a new regulatory requirement or mandatary training qualification for a particular role, a commission has ruled in one of a rapidly growing number of decisions on the issue.

A global aviation services company was entitled to sack a NSW worker who "quite extraordinarily" refused to provide proof of her COVID-19 vaccination despite having received both jabs, a tribunal has found.

A risk and compliance manager's role included safety inspections and many other tasks that needed to be performed at her employer's premises, a commission has heard in rejecting her claim that she should have been permitted to work from home instead of being "forced" to have a COVID-19 vaccine.

An extensive Japanese study of more than 130,000 workers from 1,400 companies has shown a sharp rise in the incidence of unhealthy weight gain, high blood pressure, hyperglycemia and liver damage following COVID-19 restrictions and work-from-home policies.

The Fair Work Commission has found an employer moved too quickly to dismiss a worker who refused to get vaccinated for COVID-19, and should have waited until all employees in his category were required to return to the office.

The jailing of a business owner for industrial manslaughter, the commencement of a mirror WHS Act, legislative changes across most jurisdictions, and a host of judgments on work-related COVID matters, are just some of the issues covered by OHS Alert's first major review report of the year.

A commission has thrown out a worker's out-of-time challenge of her employer's refusal to exempt her from a COVID-19 vaccination directive. She claimed she couldn't have a vaccine because of her religious beliefs against abortion and other issues.

A commissioner has ordered the reinstatement of a worker who was sacked for allegedly unsafely "enforcing" a COVID-19 mask mandate, and breaching conflict de-escalation procedures, by asking a customer to put on his mask properly.

Flexible working arrangements that genuinely support health and wellbeing are being offered to the employees of one of Australia's "best places to work" on the terms that most suit them, instead of under a blanket rule, according to the company's director.