During this period the FWO claims Tuscan ceased to engage, or offer to engage, the employee for casual employment and when the employee inquired about his employment status he was informed that his hours would return to normal after his claim was resolved.
As a result of this, the FWO says Tuscan breached the general protection provisions of the Fair Work Act and caused the employee to suffer non-economic loss and damage including stress and anxiety and hurt, humiliation and inconvenience.
The Fair Work Ombudsman is seeking penalties against Tuscan, Commons and Thompson with a maximum penalty per breach is $33,000 for the company and $6,600 each for Commons and Thompson.
Andrew Douglas, partner at M&K Lawyers, told SmartCompany there are a number of employers who simply don’t know what the statutory entitlements or award-based entitlements are for employees and are willing to allow people to use their own cars for business without compensation.
“When the employee raised, and rightly raised, that his job was threatened you could not get a more obvious breach,” Douglas says.
“This is everyday stuff in small business. It is not surprising it occurs as there is so much regulation of the employment relationship and little is known of it by local accountants, which is where small businesses often turn for advice.”
Douglas says small businesses are being squeezed financially and so are looking to pay as little as possible.
“Tuscan may just not have adequate knowledge of the legislation and, in this case, if the manager had rung the Fair Work info line he would have been okay.”
