Thursday, November 20, 2008

Federal Ombudsman now after butchers, bakers and coffee makers

Queensland Business Review
www.qbr.com.au

Butchers and bakers throughout Queensland and the rest of Australia are about to come under the watchful eye of the Federal Workplace Ombudsman over whether their workers are being properly paid.

Ombudsman Nicholas Wilson said a national food campaign running over the Christmas – New Year period would specifically target butchers, bakers, cafes, grocers, delis and suppliers of bulk food items such as seafood and poultry.

Mr Wilson said employers found to be underpaying workers or in breach of any other workplace laws would be advised to "rectify the situation immediately" however deliberate cases of abuse will have employers paying a $33,000 fine.

The Ombudsman’s move comes on top of a human services campaign that targeted 500 aged and child-care facilities around the country which ended with 600 workers receiving more than $155,000 in back pay.

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