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Department of Communities and Justice ordered to compensate terminated caseworker
An NSW child-protection caseworker has been compensated after being “harshly” dismissed by the Department of Communities and Justice last year.
Lauren Croft
In September 2021, Vanessa Lichi was terminated from her employment at the Department of Communities and Justice based on the fact that she had attended the World Freedom Rally whilst stay-at-home orders were still in place. The department also said her Facebook posts were “derogatory” towards NSW government officials and accused her of breaching the department’s code of ethical conduct and failing to uphold government sector core values and principles.
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In March this year, Ms Lichi, represented by Samir Banga of Banga Legal, was granted 12 weeks’ pay as part of the NSW Industrial Relations Commission by commissioner John Murphy, who ordered the Department of Communities and Justice to compensate Ms Lichi.
Ms Lichi had a young daughter and partner who were dependent on her, as her partner’s work hours had been significantly affected by the pandemic, and a mother and step-father for whom she also provided financial support.
“I thought that I had a right to protest, even when there was a directive … I was trying to read about the constitution and what this means in Australia and about our, you know, right to protest,” she stated in court.
“So, my understanding was that at the time I thought that [the implied constitutional right to political communication, to peacefully protest and assemble] would override the directive.”
Ms Lichi further stated that she did not attend the rally to represent the department but rather to demonstrate her concerns in relation to the efficacy of vaccines and the impact that the restrictions were going to have for the younger generation and her family circumstances.
According to Mr Banga, “there had been no determination at all from anyone to say that [the applicant had] breached any of the public health orders”.
On that basis, commissioner Murphy concluded that “the applicant’s dismissal was neither unjust nor unreasonable. However, given the applicant’s personal circumstances, I have formed the view that her dismissal was, nevertheless, harsh.”
Upon the victory of his client, Mr Banga said that he hopes this case “sets a standard for other matters of a similar nature”.
“These cases are about choice, personal situations and not merely anti-vax cases as promoted by some media outlets. This was a deserved win for our client, who has suffered a lot of trauma and stress at the hands of the department,” he said.
