Sign Up
..... Connect Australia with the world.
Categories

Posted: 2023-06-05 04:14:42

Coles and Woolworths short-changed workers on overtime by setting up a payment structure that was foreign to Australia's industrial awards system, the Federal Court has been told.

A joint trial, brought by the Fair Work Ombudsman and two class action claimants against the supermarket giants, commenced in the Federal Court on Monday, alleging underpayment of workers over a number of years.

It comes after Coles last week said it had set aside another $25 million to repay salaried managers it underpaid for years, while Woolworths has previously disclosed underpaying thousands of employees to the tune of around $390 million.

In his opening address, Fair Work Ombudsman barrister Justin Bourke KC argued the "entirely foreign" payment structure covering some workers would always "end badly for Woolworths and Coles and its employees".

"It was like trying to put a square peg into a round hole," Mr Bourke told the court.

View More
  • 0 Comment(s)
Captcha Challenge
Reload Image
Type in the verification code above