Court set for $85,000 ‘underpayment’ allegations

Two businessmen from the affluent Melbourne suburb of Toorak face court for allegedly underpaying staff at a central Geelong 7-Eleven store.
Federal Government’s Fair Work Ombudsman alleged Hao Chen and Xue King’s company, Bosen, underpaid four staff more than $85,000 in Geelong and at another 7-Eleven store in Melbourne’s South Yarra.
The Ombudsman alleged Bosen paid the 18 to 23-year-old workers flat rates of $9 to $11.50 an hour over four years.
The staff were allegedly short-changed $40,583, $25,341, $15,845 and $3639 respectively.
The Ombudsman alleged Bosen entered false information into its payroll system, failed to keep “proper” employment records and faked payslip entries.
Fair Work Ombudsman executive director Michael Campbell said prosecutors would argue the underpayments were deliberate, with Bosen ignoring demands for back-pay.
“We will be alleging this is a case of serious exploitation,” he said.
The Ombudsman was seeking back-pay for the staff and alleging several braches of workplace relations laws.
Maximum penalties for each breach were $33,000 for Bosen, the Ombudsman’s office said.
Mr Chen and Mr Jing faced maximum fines of $6600 each.