Common Examples of Wage Theft

Common examples of wage theft in Australian workplaces are mundane rather than obvious, which is exactly why they persist for years.

• Classifying an employee at the wrong award level, so every hour is paid slightly under.
• Unpaid time before and after a rostered shift, such as opening up, handover or cleaning down.
• Penalty rates, overtime or allowances not applied where the award requires them.
• Unpaid trial or training shifts.
• Unlawful deductions, including arrangements where an employee is asked to pay money back.
• Superannuation contributions not made, or not made on time.

Only some of these will ever be intentional. All of them create civil exposure, and the ones that carry on after somebody has raised them are the ones that begin to look deliberate rather than careless.

The Fair Work Ombudsman publishes enforcement outcomes. This is general information rather than legal advice, and obligations vary by state and territory.

See Sentrient’s wage theft webinar and HR management system.