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The FWO found the company had underpaid two visa holders and provided false records to investigators.
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Cleaning firm penalised over $120k for exploiting visa workers
18 April 2023
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The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) has secured $124,186 penalties against Sydney-based cleaning services company Green Clean (Aust) Pty Ltd and its former manager for exploiting visa workers.
The Federal Circuit and Family Court imposed a $105,840 penalty against the business and an $18,346 fine against the former manager who admitted breaching workplace laws and producing false or misleading documents to a Fair Work inspector.
It follows an ATO penalty of $9,450 on Green Clean in 2016 after it failed to back pay two Filipino international students employed at the time.
On this occasion, FWO sent inspectors to investigate after it received a request for assistance from the affected workers.
The investigation revealed the workers had been underpaid minimum wages, casual loading, penalty rates, overtime entitlements and superannuation, and had not received amounts due to them within seven days of termination.
During the inquiry, Green Clean supplied false records and documents to the FWO in response to a Notice to Produce.
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The court found the underpayment contraventions related to the purported engagement of the workers “as independent contractors when they were, in reality, casual employees and covered by the cleaning services award and the respondents knew this”.
Judge Brana Obradovic found the breaches were serious due to the repeat offending and the vulnerability of international students who were “unlikely to be aware of minimum Australian labour standards”.
“It is vital for the purposes of the Fair Work Act that the public is left in no doubt as to there being obligations to afford employees their minimum entitlements and to cooperate with statutory notices issued by FWO, such as a Notice to Produce,” said Judge Obradovic.
“A Notice to Produce seeks to allow the FWO to have enough information to properly investigate and ensure that employees are provided their minimum entitlements.”
“Where a person provides false or misleading information in response to a Notice to Produce, it undermines the Fair Work Act’s enforcement framework and the very purpose of the Fair Work Act.”
Fair Work Ombudsman Sandra Parker said employers that repeatedly breached workplace laws would face significant consequences.
“Employers need to be aware that protecting vulnerable workers, like visa holders, is an enduring priority for the FWO,” said Ms Parker.
“It is disappointing that we have again had to take court action and secure penalties against this company for underpaying international students.”
“Deliberately providing false or misleading documents to inspectors is also a serious breach of the Fair Work Act and will not be tolerated.”
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