The Fair Work Ombudsman has assured business owners only intentional underpayment of staff will be pursued under new criminal laws, which came into effect on January 1.
In a message, targetted at small businesses which may not have access to advanced payroll systems like larger organisations, Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth said employers could be assured that honest efforts to pay the right wages and other entitlements for their employees would protect them from prosecution.
Ms Booth said business owners, with fewer than 15 employees, should read the regulator’s Guide and follow the Voluntary Small Business Wage Compliance Code to avoid worry about the criminal offence.
“Genuine mistakes will not be prosecuted under the new criminal underpayment laws that commenced on 1 January,” she said.
“We understand that small business employers who work diligently to do the right thing by their employees may be concerned about being impacted by the criminalisation of intentional underpayments.
“They should rest assured – the offence applies only to intentional underpayments, and compliance with the Voluntary Code means we can’t refer a small business for possible prosecution.”
Ms Booth said the Fair Work Ombudsman’s Guide outlined steps businesses could take to ensure they were paying employees correctly, including practical tools, a handy checklist, examples and best practice tips, and an explanation on how the Code would apply.
She said both the Guide and the Voluntary Small Business Wage Compliance Code were available on the FWO’s website.
