Australian Sikh fined A$57,000 for underpaying Indian student
Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 26 May, 2023 11:15 AM
An Australian court has imposed a penalty of more than A$57,000 on a Melbourne-based painting company owned by a Sikh man for breaches affecting an Indian student working for it.
The Federal Circuit and Family Court on Thursday imposed a A$47,952 penalty against the Mehtaab Group, which operates a business trading as Paint Splash, and A$9,590.04 against the company's sole director and shareholder, Vikramjeet Singh Khalsa.
The penalties were secured by Australian regulatory authority, Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO), which investigated the case after receiving a request for assistance from the affected Indian.
In June 2021, the FWO found that Mehtaab Group unfairly dismissed the worker, following which it ordered the company to pay the worker $21,491 compensation, plus superannuation, within two weeks.
The company failed to make the payments to the Indian, who was employed by the company for almost a year.
During the investigation, a Fair Work Inspector formed a belief that Mehtaab Group failed to pay the worker's accrued but untaken annual leave entitlements when it dismissed her.
In September 2021, the inspector issued Mehtaab Group with a compliance notice, which required the company to calculate and back-pay any outstanding annual leave entitlements owed to the worker.
The Court found the company breached the Fair Work Act by failing to comply with a Fair Work Commission order to pay A$21,491.17 in compensation to the worker as a result of an unfair dismissal claim, and failing to comply with an FWO compliance notice to pay outstanding annual leave entitlements to the worker.
The penalties were imposed against Khalsa after the court found he was involved in both breaches.
In addition to the penalties, the court ordered Mehtaab Group to pay the outstanding Fair Work Commission order for unfair dismissal compensation, plus superannuation, and to calculate and back-pay the annual leave entitlements owing to the worker.
Fair Work Ombudsman Sandra Parker said the regulator was prepared to take action to reinforce the importance of complying with Fair Work Commission orders and FWO compliance notices.
"The Fair Work Ombudsman is prepared to take legal action to ensure that employees receive all compensation and entitlements they are lawfully entitled to. Any employees with concerns about their pay or entitlements should contact the FWO for free advice and assistance."
The FWO has filed 126 litigations involving visa holder workers, and secured more than A$13.4 million in court-ordered penalties in visa holder litigations, in the past five full financial years.
The shooting occurred at 4.13 p.m. on Sunday evening in the US city's 12200 block of Blakley Avenue, Xinhua news agency quoted the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department as saying in a notification. Two male adult victims were pronounced dead at the scene, the Department said.
The Speaker asked Shehbaz to move to the seat of the Prime Minister in the House and he shifted to the treasury benches amid cheers, with other members of the former joint opposition following suit. Shehbaz said it is the first time in Pakistan's history that a no-confidence motion against a Prime Minister has been successf
In a landmark judgement, the Supreme Court of Pakistan ruled on Thursday that the National Assembly Deputy Speakers ruling to dismiss the no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan and the subsequent dissolution of the Lower House by the President on the PMs advice were contrary to the Constitution and the law of the land, Express Tribune reported.
Akshata Murthy, whose father is one of India's richest men, is facing scrutiny after it emerged she has kept the status despite living in 11 Downing Street with the Chancellor and their children.
A panel of U.S. vaccine experts was meeting Wednesday to discuss key questions for future COVID-19 booster campaigns. The Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine advisers won’t make any binding decisions during the virtual meeting, but their advice could shape the government’s approach for years to come.
Speaking during an address at the Governor's House, Khan said there has been a "foreign conspiracy" against the country, and those who became a part of it are "traitors who are betraying democracy as well as the future generations".
