OTR is facing a $70 million legal claim for underpaying staff, says it will defend the matter
The state’s largest private employer, OTR, is facing a class action over alleged staff underpayments, but says it will defend the claim and is committed to paying employees correctly.
SA Business
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One of South Australia’s most successful family-owned businesses has been hit with a $70 million class action alleging it underpaid staff.
Adero Law has lodged a Federal Court claim, accusing Shahin Enterprises - the employing entity for the OTR group - of underpaying potentially more than 8000 current and former employees.
The class action, lodged on behalf of former employee Aaron Furnell against OTR, claims employees performed unpaid work prior to and after rostered shifts, meal breaks were wrongly deducted, and incorrect rates were paid to trainees, among other claims.
Adero Law said in a statement that as well as seeking back-payment of the alleged underpayments plus interest, it had asked the court to impose pecuniary penalties as part of its claim, with those penalties to be paid directly to claimants.
OTR said in a statement it would defend the claim, and had “repeatedly made it clear to Adero that OTR will correct any payment errors brought to its attention’’.
“OTR is one of many retailers targeted by Canberra-based Adero Law in its ‘Operation Overtime campaign’, which has seen it advertising class actions against Coles, Woolworths, Big W, Target and others,’’ the company said.
“Anyone in retail will agree that the industrial system in Australia is incredibly complex.
“The challenges of managing a 24/7 business, with a large workforce, across multiple sites and industrial instruments means that mistakes are always possible, which is why businesses, including OTR, have processes in place to investigate and fix any potential issues raised.
“OTR wants to reassure all staff that it has a process in place to validate and fix any wage discrepancies raised by current or former employees. That process will be undertaken at no cost to employees and will ensure the employee gets 100 cents in the dollar for any monies owed.’’
Last month Shahin Enterprises lost its appeal against a ruling from the state’s employment tribunal handed down last June, which also dealt with underpayments.
The tribunal found that OTR failed to pay a former trainee for 10 to 15 minutes of work undertaken before each shift, wrongly deducted 30 minutes from shifts for meal breaks he never took, and failed to pay proper overtime penalty rates.
OTR, formerly On The Run, employs more than 3000 people in SA and operates almost 150 outlets.
Adero Law said anyone who worked for Shahin Enterprises Pty Ltd from May 13, 2014 was eligible to register for this class action.
The statute of limitations for underpayments in Australia is six years counting back from the date of filing.
Adero is currently seeking to raise matters against, or has lodged actions, against 14 Australian companies.