An Auckland bottle store s been hit with a 46-thousand-dollar fine for exploiting a migrant worker - 24-Dec-2020 nzcity.co.nz - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from nzcity.co.nz Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Auckland bottle store ordered to pay $46k for exploiting worker
23 Dec, 2020 07:31 PM
3 minutes to read
NZ Herald
A Papatoetoe bottle store has been ordered to pay thousands of dollars of compensation for exploiting a migrant worker.
Basra and Khella Ltd, trading as Super Liquor Papatoetoe, has been ordered by the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) to pay $18,000 in penalties and more than $28,000 in arrears to a former worker.
The breaches include more than $25,000 in unpaid wages, and more than $3000 in unpaid holidays and leave allowances.
The Authority heard the worker was commuting six days a week from their home in the North Shore to South Auckland for work, where shifts would regularly go for 12 hours and were often unpaid in full.
Labour Inspectorate sector lead Loua Ward said the authority heard the worker was commuting six days a week from their home in the North Shore to the bottle shop in south Auckland, where shifts would regularly last for 12 hours and were often unpaid in full.
Ward said because Basra and Khella s sole director and employer Ravinda Basra had failed to keep accurate records, the authority relied on the worker s testimony, along with his public transport records, time stamped photos and purchase receipts from neighbouring businesses to prove his claims. This is not the first time the Inspectorate has brought alternative evidence like this to show an employer s exploitative actions, especially where an absence of accurate wage and time records has occurred, Ward said on Thursday.
Papatoetoe bottle store to pay 46,000 dollars for exploiting worker - MBIE voxy.co.nz - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from voxy.co.nz Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.