A lawsuit brought by AFL great Warren Tredrea against his former employer Channel Nine for firing him when he refused to abide by COVID-19 vaccine mandates has been thrown out.
The former Port Adelaide forward claimed the broadcaster unfairly terminated his contract as a South Australian sports presenter in January 2022 for refusing to get the vaccination.
Justice Geoffrey Kennett dismissed the former Port Adelaide forward’s application in a Federal Court hearing on Thursday, agreeing with Nine’s claim that it had a right to terminate Tredrea’s contract to protect itself from reputational damage.
“The evidence does not show that the decision to terminate the services agreement was anything other than a reasonable one, in the sense of a bona fide attempt to protect Channel Nine’s legitimate interests,” Justice Kennett wrote in his judgment.
Nine as an employer had an interest in its workers being able come to work without disruption and having regard to the “wishes and concerns of the significant majority of the workforce who wanted the people with whom they had contact to be vaccinated”, the judgment said.
Justice Kennett found Tredrea undermined Nine’s efforts to administer its workforce by refusing to inform his employer of his vaccination status.
He also posed a reputational risk to the company through his outspoken public comments against the COVID vaccine, which were diametrically opposed to Nine’s public position.
“Mr Tredrea was a controversial figure who was discussed in other media outlets in a manner that was unwelcome to Channel 9,” Justice Kennett said.
“Rather than having the studied neutrality of a newsreader, he was associated in public discourse with an unpopular viewpoint on an issue apt to excite strong emotions.”
Tredrea has been ordered to pay Nine’s legal costs but will be allowed to present a claim as to why he should not have to pay them.
This post was originally published on Michael West.
