In a significant decision on directors' liability for underpayments, a court has found that although the co-founder of Chatime was unaware the bubble-tea chain was in breach of workplace laws, he understood enough about award obligations around casual and weekend penalty rates to be considered complicit.
Large corporates and universities accounted for almost two-thirds of the $509 million in unpaid wages and entitlements recovered by the FWO in 2022-23 on behalf of more than 250,000 workers, the workplace watchdog revealed today.
The FWC has reinforced its view that zombie agreements should not be extended "merely" because the parties are in harmony, observing that nothing is stopping a charity funded by Australia's orchestras from negotiating a new deal with its valued finance manager.
The FWC has given coal miner Peabody until Thursday to respond to its suggestion that it adopt "somewhat more neutrally worded" clauses in a proposed agreement that says workers are "required" to work on public holidays.
A court has limited to about $100,000 the fines it has imposed on an underpaying, now-shuttered labour hire company after accepting that it unintentionally broke the law and that its embarrassed founder is "appropriately remorseful".
A law firm has failed to overturn the "bulk" of a court decision to award a junior solicitor more than $185,000 in compensation and penalties after his sacking for making almost 250 complaints.
A FWC full bench has rejected a farmworker's bid to scrap casual overtime award rates she claims prompted an employer to sideline her during a peak harvest period because she reached the maximum ordinary hours.
Despite warning of an "unbounded period" of entitlement, DEWR has failed to overturn an AAT finding that a real estate salesperson is eligible for FEG payments reflecting sales commissions that did not fall due until properties settled after the 13-week statutory window.
A NSW Greens candidate has won extra time to pursue an investment bank with a former Coalition IR Minister on its board, after it allegedly refused his parental leave application and retrenched him after he ran for local government and inquired about his rights.
