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An employee who refused vaccination but wasn't yet required to return to the workplace was prematurely dismissed, the Fair Work Commission has ruled.

The Baptcare customer service support employee was working from home when, in response to a Victorian Government public health mandate, his employer introduced a COVID-19 vaccination policy, requiring all staff to have their first dose by 15 October 2021. The employee emailed his employer about the safety of the vaccine, but it didn't answer and he didn't meet the October deadline.

Baptcare said the employee couldn't keep working without proof of vaccination or a medical exemption, and told him not to log on the following Monday. He responded that his questions still hadn't been answered, and worked as usual.

The employer then blocked the employee's IT access and invited him to a virtual meeting, at which he made it clear he had no intention of being vaccinated. A show-cause process followed and in November he was dismissed...