Degani Greensborough part-owner Sajid Amin fined for underpaying workers

The part-owner of a Greensborough coffee shop has been hit with a $140,000 fine for underpaying teens and migrant workers and falsifying records.

Part-owner of Degani Cafe in Greensborough Sajid Amin was penalised for underpaying workers.

The operator of a Greensborough cafe has been hit with a $140,000 fine after paying workers as little as $12 an hour.

Sajid Amin, who runs and part-owns the Degani outlet, underpaid 15 employees a total of $12,506 — the workers included four teenagers, one aged 15, and four adult migrant workers from China and Malaysia.

His cafe was penalised $23,562 in the Federal Circuit Court in December.

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SHMAP Group Pty Ltd, which held a franchise agreement with Degani Greensborough and which Mr Amin was also a director of, was penalised a further $117,810.

The court found employees were not paid minimum hourly rates, penalty rates or any other entitlements over a nine-week period in 2016.

Mr Amin and SHMAP Group also breached workplace laws by failing to issue pay slips and providing Fair Work inspectors with false records during the investigation, the court heard.

Fair Work Ombudsman’s Sandra Parker said the penalty imposed by the court showed underpayment of vulnerable workers would not be tolerated.

“We took this company to court because the conduct involved two of the most vulnerable groups in our workforce — young workers and workers from non-English speaking backgrounds,” she said.

“These groups are at risk as they may not seek help because of language and cultural barriers, concerns about visa status, or they may be unaware of their workplace rights.”

Judge Philip Burchardt said Mr Amin “has roundly sought to blame everyone but himself” for the breaches.

“Not only does the evidence suggest that some endeavours were made to educate him, it is for him as the employer, and for the employer itself through him, properly to inform themselves, particularly when they were on clear notice that obligations were extant,” he said.

“The evidence shows that the employees were not in a position to bargain meaningfully with Mr Amin.”

The court ordered Mr Amin to also undertake training and education using the Fair Work Ombudsman’s online learning centre.

All affected employees were back-paid the amount owed.

The Leader attempted to contact Degani Greensborough, but the phone was disconnected.

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