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The department has briefed directors on the implications of the change to pandemic orders.
Deputy Secretary David Howes said that “conventional school staff will no longer have to meet vaccination requirements to attend work.”
“These staff will be able to return to service from the beginning of the 3rd quarter on Monday, July 11, 2022. Any returning staff can be used in a number of functions, including relief teaching,” he said in an email. to the staff.
Principals and school boards cannot set their own requirements for vaccinating staff.
A high school principal who had to fire three staff members who refused to be vaccinated said he would welcome one of them again, despite disagreeing with his position. , because they were fantastic employees. But the other two had been aggressive in raising their objections to the mandate and “burned their bridges,” the director said.
But the director, commenting on the condition of anonymity, predicted that it would not cost them to find teaching work elsewhere.
“There are so many vacancies right now that they could find work in five seconds if they want to.”
Another director said he anticipated some potential resentment from staff who had been vaccinated, but would not accept it.
“You have to be professional and move on as if nothing had happened,” he said. “Don’t get caught up in emotional and political struggles with your staff … When they come back, they’ll get a job at the school and the tone of the school will be, we’ll move on.”
Labor lawyer Paul O’Halloran, a partner at Colin Biggers & Paisley, said some non-governmental schools could choose to enforce their own mandates, but they should be legal and reasonable to avoid being challenged.
He said any school that discloses the vaccination status of a staff member would be a serious violation of the Privacy Act, despite any parent’s desire to know.
O’Halloran has acted for several non-governmental schools that are being challenged in the Fair Work Commission by former employees who were fired for challenging the mandate, and said the expiration of the mandate would not help the legal cases of these teachers. .
“The change in indications is not retrospective, so refusing to be vaccinated for the last six months or more is still misconduct at the time it occurred,” O’Halloran said.
“Some people were great teachers, they only had a philosophical or religious objection … and the school had no choice but to say goodbye, and in some cases they were really anxious decisions to make, and they could be re-employed.” said O’Halloran.
Marissa Dunn was studying to be a child educator but due to her term, she was unable to complete the 120 hours of internship she has to do to graduate because she is not vaccinated.
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Dunn, a mother of four who wants to return to work now that her children are of school age, said she had completed her career, but no child care center would accept her because of her tenure. the vaccine.
He said he had been looking for an alternative job, but now he was looking forward to completing his internship and starting a new career in early learning.
“I want to be a part of the learning and growth that kids do,” Dunn said.
Parents Victoria Executive Director Gail McHardy said the end of the term would be welcomed by school leaders struggling with labor shortages and grateful parents for their children to learn on-site.
“Schools have always been the meat of the sandwich to comply with the health director’s instructions through their employer and meet the community’s expectations to keep the schools running,” he said.
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