Why you can’t afford to get it wrong!
With the Fair Work Ombudsman recently announcing in its Annual Report 2023 – 24 it recovered $473 million for nearly 160,000 underpaid workers; it’s never been more important for employers to seek advice from our Business Advice Hotline.
The recoveries came in a year where the Fair Work Ombudsman secured the largest penalties in its 15-year history, with the regulator’s litigations leading to $21.2 million in court-ordered penalties.
The Fair Work Ombudsman reported that the $473 million recovered for workers across Australia is the third-highest annual figure recorded.
More than half of the 2023 – 24 recoveries came from large corporate sector employers, who together back-paid more than $333 million to nearly 110,000 underpaid employees. This sector, a continuing priority area for the FWO, has had a cumulative $877 million back-paid to workers since July 2020.
The Fair Work Ombudsman investigations and enforcement actions send a strong message that employers must place a higher priority on ensuring they are meeting their workers’ legal entitlements, and that includes by improving their payroll systems and governance and investing in advice and support.
The workplace regulator also issued 2,574 Compliance Notices, recovering $16.9 million in unpaid wages. Fair Work Inspectors issued 760 Infringement Notices for record-keeping or pay slip breaches, with total fines of $986,616 – an increase from 626 Infringement Notices in 2022 – 23 and $739,966 in fines paid.
The Fair Work Ombudsman is continuing its intelligence-led, priority-driven work in 2024 – 25, targeting high risk sectors including: aged care services, agriculture, building and construction, disability support services, fast food, restaurants and cafés, large corporates and universities.
We are here to help
Here at the South Australian Business Chamber (SABC) we deal with thousands of businesses who are attempting to do the right thing and pay their staff correctly, however, we know that industrial relations is complex and at times, unintentional mistakes may result in an underpayment. If you are unsure or think it might be time to check what you are paying our team of Consultants are experts in industrial relations and can work with you to conduct an audit on your payroll system.
Our team or Workplace Advisors are also on standby to provide Members with advice on rates of pay, Modern Award classifications and more. For workplace advice contact our Business Advice Hotline on (08) 8300 0000 (select option 1) or register your on-line enquiry here.
