The Fair Work Ombudsman has secured $16,000 in penalties in court against the former operators of an Italian restaurant in Canberra.
The Federal Circuit and Family Court has imposed a $12,500 penalty against GK Food Bars & Restaurants Pty Ltd, which formerly operated the La Pasteria restaurant in Greenway, and an additional $3,500 penalty against company director George Varvaritis.
The penalties were imposed in response to the company breaching the Fair Work Act by failing to comply with a Compliance Notice requiring it to back-pay two workers. Mr Varvaritis was involved in the contravention.
The Court has also ordered GK Food Bars & Restaurants Pty Ltd to take the action required by the Compliance Notice, which includes calculating and rectifying underpayments owed to the two workers, plus superannuation and interest.
Fair Work Ombudsman Sandra Parker said business operators that fail to act on Compliance Notices need to be aware they can face court-imposed penalties on top of having to back-pay workers.
“When Compliance Notices are not followed, we are prepared to take legal action to ensure workers receive their lawful entitlements,” Ms Parker said.
“Any employees with concerns about their pay or entitlements should contact us for free advice and assistance.”
The Fair Work Ombudsman commenced an investigation after receiving requests for assistance from two workers who had been employed by GK Food Bars & Restaurants Pty Ltd.
A Fair Work Inspector issued a Compliance Notice to the company in January 2020 after forming a belief the company had failed to correctly pay the two workers.
The inspector believed one worker, employed on a casual basis as a cook at La Pasteria from May to July 2019, was underpaid casual minimum rates and superannuation owed under the Restaurant Industry Award 2010.
The inspector believed the other worker, employed as full-time head chef at La Pasteria from April to August 2019, was underpaid wages for hours worked in his final two weeks of work and not paid accrued annual leave entitlements at the end of his employment.
