Hotelier to face court over alleged underpayments

hotel industry
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The operators of a hotel in Onslow in regional Western Australia are set to appear before the Federal Circuit Court for alleged underpayments.

According to the Fair Work Ombudsman, Beadon Bay Resort Pty Ltd and its company director Emanuel Dillon were culpable of the underpayment of 13 employees between May and December 2019 under the Hospitality Industry (General) Award 2010, including casual loading, casual minimum payments, weekend and public holiday penalty rates, overtime rates and late-night rates. Eight of the workers were working-holiday-visa holders from the UK and Europe.

A Fair Work Inspector also determined that one employee was not paid his accrued annual leave on termination of employment under the National Employment Standards.

The inspector issued a Compliance Notice to Beadon Bay Resort in May 2020 which required it to calculate and back-pay the workers’ outstanding entitlements. However, the operators reportedly failed to comply despite several attempts to secure such compliance.

Beadon Bay Resort Pty Ltd faces a maximum penalty of up to $33,300 while Dillon faces a maximum potential penalty of up to $6660. The FWO is also seeking a court order for Beadon Bay Resort to take the action required by the Compliance Notice, which includes calculating and rectifying any underpayments in full for the employees, plus superannuation.

A hearing is scheduled in the Federal Circuit Court in Perth on 12 April 2021.