I simply don’t believe it.
A reader says the Mercury hasn’t been fully reporting the facts, telling Hag this yesterday:
Quite funny there was no mention in the story below of Davies Brothers Pty Ltd recently having to cough up substantial backpay to their publishing workforce. I did hear that News Ltd’s IR heavy hitter was in town trying to prevent Uncle Rupert from shelling out.
Apparently it’s all down to the definition of “casual employment”.
Workers were only paid out after signing a gag agreement.
Workers win $1 m payback
Hobart Mercury (Australia) – Saturday, November 28, 2009
Author: DAVID KILLICK
TASMANIAN workers recovered more than a million dollars in lost wages last financial year, Fair Work Ombudsman Nicholas Wilson said yesterday.
Nearly 600 workers had been repaid money as a result of 498 complaints and 227 recorded breaches of workplace law.
Mr Wilson said most underpayments resulted from a lack of understanding by employers of their legal obligations, including applicable awards and pay scales.
“People get to be underpaid for a number of reasons, sometimes it’s deliberate error on the part of the employer, more often than not it’s a mistake,” he said.
Among the cases were:
* A Hobart butcher was found to have underpaid five staff more than $47,400, an average of $9480 each.
* A yard hand at a transport company lost $13,800 in wages, annual leave and long-service leave entitlements when he left the company.
* Seven junior staff at a bakery underpaid a total of $6200 because they were receiving less than the applicable award.
* A deckhand on a fishing boat underpaid $3200.
* A manager of a retail outlet underpaid $2700 because he received a flat rate of pay regardless of hours worked.
The underpayments highlighted the need for employers to regularly seek up-to-date information on rates and conditions, Mr Wilson said.
Fair Work Ombudsman acting state director Glenn Jordan said penalties of up to $33,000 per breach applied to those who deliberately flouted the law.
In April, the operator of the Caltex petrol station at Latrobe was fined a total of $241,000 for underpaying six employees.
TKM Investments Pty Ltd was fined $201,300 and director Grania Kathleen Loone a further $40,260. The company was ordered to pay $41,000 to six employees.
For wage rates and conditions visit the website www.fwo.gov.au or phone 13 13 94.
Hag simply does not believe Mercury would act this way. No, I will not/ I do not believe this.
It couldn’t be true, could it?
Hag
