The Fair Work Commission has found that the sacking of teacher who sticky-taped troublesome students to their chairs was “harsh”.

The commission's tribunal has heard the case of an early primary teacher, known as Ms RT, who worked at a joint Catholic and Anglican college until she was dismissed in December last year.

The commission said the teacher admitted using masking tape to secure three students to their chairs, but claimed it was done “in a playful way”.

Masking tape was placed across the children's lap and down each side of the chair, similar to the lower half of a seatbelt.

One student was told “he could not get up until he had finished his work,” the tribunal heard.

The commission found that using masking tape to attach children to chairs was a breach of protective practices policy.

Commission senior deputy president Matthew O'Callaghan found that the teacher recognised it may have scared one of the children at least, and was a valid reason for her termination.

But Mr O'Callaghan ruled the dismissal was “harsh”, because the school had been fine to allow Ms RT to continue teaching after the allegations were first made.

He said the school's acting principal, known in the case as Mr P, said that the children were not at risk in Ms RT's class, a sentiment undermined by his later decision to sack her.

“I have concluded that the Mrs RT's summary dismissal was harsh in that, while her conduct provided a valid reason for the termination of her employment, the school's decision to permit her to continue to teach after the allegations against her were made was inconsistent with that summary dismissal,” he said.

“Had the dismissal been with notice, I may have arrived at a different conclusion.”

The Commission did not recommend Ms RT be reinstated, but awarded her compensation of six weeks' pay.

Independent Education Union of Australia SA secretary Glen Seidal said he was disappointed, because the ruling would see the teacher's name blacklisted.

“Once somebody has been dismissed, if they go on that blacklist, they will never get a job anyway, no matter what the teacher's registration board says or what the commission says,” Mr Seidal said.