FWO secures over $5m in back payments for aged-care workers

More than 3,500 employees have been affected by significant and potentially systemic underpayments.

A recent Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) statement noted that 13 separate organisations were determined to have underpaid their employees, comprising six residential aged-care providers and seven home care providers.

The former has back paid 2,338 employees over $2.17 million, and the latter has paid more than $3.13 million to 1,253 employees.

The aged-care providers were based in Victoria, NSW, South Australia, Queensland, or Western Australia, with many operating across multiple states.

A total of 16 compliance notices were issued to the organisations following FWO investigations that were sparked by previous non-compliance with the Fair Work Act, anonymous reports from staff members, and additional intelligence. Uncovered contraventions included underpayment of minimum rates of pay, underpayment or non-payment of broken shift entitlements, non-payment of minimum engagement periods, and underpayment of overtime.

Record-keeping and payslip breaches, failure to provide a Fair Work Information Statement to all employees, and, in one case, advertisement of a below-minimum rate of pay were also identified.

Underpayment averaged $1,478 per employee, which included direct care workers, including personal care workers, enrolled and registered nurses, and assistants in nursing.

Further, two residential care providers fulfilled a $4,620 fine for certain breaches.

The FWO also identified that migrant workers make up a significant portion of Australia’s aged-care workforce.

The findings signal the need for aged-care providers to strengthen compliance, ensure payroll systems are fit for purpose, and ensure staff are trained to recognise payment compliance.

FWO Anna Booth said: “The FWO calls upon aged-care providers to invest in strengthening their payroll and rostering systems and to undertake their own, regular wage compliance audits – or potentially face big back-pay bills.”

“The FWO commends the investigated employers who conducted their own audits and back paid employees beyond the scope of our investigation. These actions indicated most employers were committed to putting in place assurance measures that would strengthen their compliance practices.”

“We’d like to see this proactive audit approach replicated across the aged-care sector.”

The FWO has commenced compliance investigations into 30 cleaning and catering employers.

Want to see more stories from trusted news sources?
Make HR Leader a preferred news source on Google.