The FWO alleges in court proceedings filed yesterday that Coles owes its managers about $100 million more than it has made allowance for following internal payroll audits looking at the underpayments.
In a further warning on the importance of accurate payroll systems, the Australian Red Cross Society has become the latest surprising addition to the list of underpaying employers to have entered enforceable undertakings with the FWO after the charity self-reported short-changing employees a figure now estimated to top $25 million.
Woolworths says settling a class action it dismissed as "without merit" will ensure its approach to repaying thousands of salaried managers can be "appropriately addressed" via an FWO Federal Court case, but it will first pay affected staff a further $50 million.
A court has accepted that it should impose a reduced underpayment penalty on an employer and its director because last year's extended coronavirus lockdown in Melbourne significantly reduced the size and financial resources of the business.
A traffic management company seeking a deal paying night workers shift loadings instead of higher overtime rates even if they don't take over from a preceding shift has lost its appeal bid after refusing to give an undertaking to overcome the deficiency.
Food delivery business Menulog has kicked off its trial of using employed riders instead of contractors in the Sydney CBD, with participants mostly working four-hour shifts, with the option of split shifts.
The FWO has begun prosecuting retailer Woolworths for allegedly substantially underpaying salaried managers who had been subject to annualised salaries.
Woolworths has succeeded in having reference to its own no-cost alternative inserted into an opt-out notice to be sent by law firm Adero to current and prospective class action members claiming underpayments estimated in the hundreds of millions.
Australia's largest independent grocery retailer in defending a $20 million class action has admitted to breaching leave loading requirements, but otherwise denied it should have paid salaried employees for extra hours or recorded their additional time.
