Qantas has been fined $250,000 for breaching workplace health and safety laws and discriminatory conduct in standing down a worker for raising COVID-19 concerns. The airline agreed to pay $21,000 to Theo Seremetidis, a health and safety representative, who directed others not to clean planes arriving from China during the pandemic. Seremetidis was stood down by Qantas Ground Services in February 2020 after raising concerns about staff contracting the virus.
This is the first instance of a major airline facing criminal prosecution for workplace safety violations