Elder Care Worker Fired After Breathing Into Reporter's Face on Camera at Anti-Lockdown Rally

An elder care worker was fired from her job after a video circulated online that showed her breathing into a reporter's face at an anti-lockdown rally in Melbourne, Australia. The incident was picked up by several news outlets, bringing attention to Baptcare, the company for which the woman worked. Reid Butler, the reporter whose face into which the woman breathed, posted a video of the encounter to his Twitter account. "This woman — who deliberately breathed heavily in my face at Saturday's anti-vax rally — is an aged care worker with @Baptcare," he said in the tweet. "I feel for the residents she supposedly looks after. Sickening." The video shows the woman breathing into Reid's face and then quickly running away. When she stops to answer the questions of another reporter, a police officer quickly grabs her by the arm and escorts her away from the crowds. The officer can be heard saying, "that's disgusting," as the woman protests. "How revolting," said aged care worker Melisa Burke. "I can assure you that nobody in my workplace would ever behave in this manner. It's absolutely reprehensible behaviour. I'll be very surprised if she still has a job." "If she is behaving like this she shouldn't be allowed to work in aged care," commented another Twitter user. "Surely she is no longer, name and shame!" Baptcare released a statement Tuesday notifying the public that a review had been conducted following the release of the video and said that the woman was no longer working for the company. "The employee's behaviour does not align with our core values, centred on respect and wellbeing for others," the statement read. "The employee also failed to practice social distancing, and did not wear a face mask, mandated at this time so as to minimise the spread of infections, such as COVID-19. "Baptcare does not condone the actions of this employee, which were unacceptable, and out of step with our expectations as an employer, and the expectations of the community more broadly," the statement continued. "To this end, Baptcare commenced a review of the incident relating to the employee's behaviour. The review has concluded, and the person has left our employ." Butler shared the news of her termination with his Twitter followers. "Confirmation that this woman has been fired from @Baptcare," Butler tweeted along with a link to the full statement. Commenters were mostly happy to see that the company terminated the woman's employment. Well done, @Baptcare for managing this in an expedient manner," said one Twitter user. "It is important that everyone take public health seriously." Newsweek, in partnership with NewsGuard, is dedicated to providing accurate and verifiable vaccine and health information. With NewsGuard's HealthGuard browser extension, users can verify if a website is a trustworthy source of health information. Visit the Newsweek VaxFacts website to learn more and to download the HealthGuard browser extension.