ERA finds employee forced to work 50 to 60 hours for 30-hour pay
A young migrant worker expressed regret over coming to New Zealand after being exploited by her employer for nine months.
The woman, who was hired as an assistant manager at the Criterion Club between June 2019 and February 2020, worked for 50 to 60 hours a week for a pay that was only worth 30 hours weekly.
She also said she and her husband had to live in the club as part of their employment agreement, and that they didn't have a place to go if she resigned at that time.
"I have never seen a jail, but I felt I was a prisoner. I was sorry I had ever come to New Zealand. It was a very emotional time and I just wanted to leave," the employee said as quoted by Employment New Zealand.
According to the employee, her situation at work also left a negative impact on her family and social life.
"I just didn't want to talk to anyone. I felt very sad," she said.
She eventually resigned after less than a year of working at the club, but her final holiday wasn't extended to her by her employer.
Migrant worker reaches out to government for help
The now former employee reached out to the Labour Inspectorate for help about her situation, which found that her employer, 4S Hospitality Limited, was under-recording the hours she worked at the club.
The Inspectorate raised the matter to the Employment Relations Authority (ERA), citing the seriousness of the case.
"The LI says that 4S Hospitality failed to keep compliant wages and time records for [the employee], failed to pay [the employee] minimum wages for all the time she worked, did not pay [the employee] correctly for time worked on public holidays, did not provide [the employee] with three alternative holidays, did not pay [the employee] for one unworked public holiday and failed to calculate and pay [the employee] her final holiday pay," the ERA court document read.
The ERA ruled in favour of the woman, ruling that her former employer failed to keep accurate records for the time she worked, resulting to underpayment.
"4S Hospitality failed to maintain wage and time records and holiday and leave records for [the employee]. A single penalty is sought. I will treat it as a breach of s 130 of the Employment Relations Act 2000," the ERA said in its ruling.
The ERA also ordered penalties for Kuljinder Singh Sidhu, who helped run the business and hired the woman, according to Employment NZ. The authority said Singh Sidhu knew the company was not recording the hours worked by the employee and was non-compliant with holiday pay requirements.
Overall, the amount due to the complainant in the case is $34,270, including wages arrears and interest.
'Disheartening' case of worker exploitation
Simon Humphries, Head of Compliance and Enforcement, Labour Inspectorate, described the case as "disheartening."
"It's disheartening to see that this employee felt helpless and suffered the deliberate and systemic offending that her employer caused. As happened in this case, exploitative employers can expect to be heavily penalised for their wrongdoing," he said in a statement.
The official added that employers planning to exploit their staff should remember that such actions are not tolerated, and encouraged employees who believe they're exploited to come forward.
The victim in the case also recommended going to the Labour Inspectorate for help if they feel unfair treatment in the workplace.
"Doing so changed my life and I now love this country because they looked after me," the woman said as quoted by Employment NZ.
The New Zealand government has been taking steps to prevent workers from getting exploited.
Last year, the government said it will mandate organisations to be transparent on their operations and supply chains in a new public register to address modern slavery and eliminate exploitation.
