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An employer that sacked a worker for "enforcing" a government mask mandate when it wasn't her job to do so has been ordered to reinstate her with backpay, with the Fair Work Commission "incredulous" over its actions.

In September last year, the Surfside Buslines employee asked a young adult who boarded her bus with his mask under his chin to put it on properly. When he claimed to have an exemption she asked why he'd been wearing a mask.

The passenger said he'd been visiting a friend in day surgery and, when the employee repeated her request, he said "f-ck off Karen". She told him to get off at the next stop for verbally abusing her, but he refused, and she subsequently contacted the control room, requested police assistance, and asked the remaining passengers to dismount...