Leading clothing manufacturer BLK accused of ripping off former workers including a dying mum

One of Queensland’s most iconic sportswear brands has been accused of ‘unconscionable’ conduct over an entitlement dispute with a young mum battling terminal cancer.

QUEENSLAND sportswear giant BLK is under fire for allegedly refusing to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in entitlements to former employees, including a Gold Coast mum battling terminal cancer.

Sandra Brant, the wife of former BLK chief executive Tyron Brant, is one of several former workers allegedly left in the lurch by the multimillion-dollar brand, which at its peak manufactured sportswear for dozens of professional sporting franchises around the world.

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Mrs Brant, who left the company in April, is battling stage four bowel cancer and is allegedly owed more than $40,000 in unpaid long service and holiday pay in a dispute which has sparked investigations by Fair Work Queensland and the police.

Started by the Brant family in 1999, BLK, originally known as KooGa, rose to prominence as the official manufacturer for teams including the Wallabies, Brisbane Lions, Queensland Reds and Gold Coast Titans.

But after rebounding from receivership three years ago, the company now finds itself in a battle with Mrs Brant and several other former employees. In a further blow, family photos and letters Mrs Brant wrote on a computer for her children to open after her death were allegedly wiped by BLK.

BLK said they were not aware of any personal files belonging to the Brant family being deleted.

Police launched an investigation, but BLK representatives have refused to be interviewed by detectives.

Sandra Brant, with children Allegra and Connor, is a former employee of BLK. She is seeking more than $40,000 in unpaid entitlements. Picture: AAP Image/Richard Gosling

Bizarrely, Mrs Brant was threatened with police action after her repeated emails to company management went unanswered.

The latest deadline for the payment of entitlements passed this week.

Mrs Brant, who continued working for BLK through her first round of chemotherapy last year, said she was “disgusted” by her treatment.

“I was there since the very start and you really bend over backwards for the company because you believe in it and you love it, so I was just flabbergasted at how they have handled this,” she said. “I’m still flabbergasted.”

Gail Allison, a Gold Coast lawyer from Pathway Legal specialising in entitlement disputes, is also representing several former BLK workers and said the company’s conduct was “unconscionable”.

“It’s just heartbreaking what this family is going through,” she said.

“So it is especially disappointing that they are having to fight for their entitlements. There’s lots of other employees that haven’t been paid either.”

It is understood BLK employees have been instructed not to communicate with former staffers. In a statement issued late yesterday, BLK said they would pay Mrs Brant her annual leave tomorrow and her long service entitlements ‘subject to relevant evidence coming through to us via the Queensland Office of Industrial Relations’ and had been unaware of her declining health until last week.

BLK said they were aware of one other complaint to the Fair Work Ombudsman and that matter would be resolved on Monday.

They cited ongoing legal matters involving Mrs Brant’s husband for the delay in paying entitlements for former employees.

June is Bowel Cancer Awareness Month and Mrs Brant, who had no family history of the disease, called on everyone to get tested.

“They urge people between 50 and 70 to do it, but I was only 39 and with no family history when I got diagnosed,” she said.

Mrs Brant’s sister-in-law, entertainment personality Lauren Brant, has launched aGoFundMe page for the Gold Coast mum.

“She is the most selfless person I have ever met and it’s disgusting the way she is being treated,” she said.

Originally published as Leading clothing manufacturer BLK accused of ripping off former workers including a dying mum