The Fair Work Commission has shot down a Qantas flight attendant’s claim that she was forced to resign due to the airline’s mandatory face mask policy. Although the flight attendant asserted that she was medically excused from the policy, the Commission ultimately sided with the airline, finding that the mandate was a lawful and reasonable direction and that the flight attendant did not demonstrate a medical inability to comply.
The worker was employed as a flight attendant with National Jet Operation Services, a subsidiary of Qantas, having commenced her employment in January 2013. In October 2020, on advice from its medical team, Qantas Group mandated wearing face masks for all customer-facing employees, including cabin crew. The flight attendant sought an exemption from the mandate, providing a medical certificate that wearing a mask would cause her extreme anxiety and “trouble performing [her job] safely”.
In January 2021, the flight attendant was photographed performing duties without a face mask by a passenger. The head of cabin crew subsequently alerted the flight attendant of the passenger’s complaint and offered her to wear a less-restrictive face shield instead.
After several months of correspondence, the flight attendant resigned from her employment. She applied to the Fair Work Commission, contending that she was forced to resign and was, therefore, “constructively dismissed” by the airline.
The flight attendant claimed that the mandate was...
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