The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) has commenced legal action against the operator of a 7-Eleven store in Brisbane, alleging that he underpaid an overseas worker over $21,000.
Mubin Ul Haider allegedly underpaid an employee from Nepal $21,298 between January 2013 and February 2014, failing to meet the requirement for minimum wages, casual loadings and penalty rates.
Mr Haider will be facing court with his company, Haider Enterprises Pty Ltd.
The FWO said they made various attempts to work with Mr Haider after the employee lodged a complaint, but he refused to co-operate.
“Our inspectors made extensive efforts to engage with this business operator to try to resolve the matter voluntarily, but were not able to secure sufficient co-operation,” Fair Work Ombudsman Natalie James said.
The FWO said they had issued two Notices to Produce (NTP) employment documents in May and June 2014, following them up with a letter in August. The FWO said Mr Haider also failed to respond to a Compliance Notice (CN) issued in September with a requirement to pay the employee what he was entitled within 17 days.
“Enforcing Compliance Notices and Notices to Produce is fundamental for maintaining the integrity of Australia’s workplace laws,” Ms James said.
“We will not tolerate these Notices being deliberately ignored.”
If found guilty, Mr Haider could face penalties of between $5,100 and $10,200 per breach, while his company could face penalties of between $25,500 and $51,000 per breach.
