Victoria’s wage enforcement agency charges Woolworths for underpaying ex-employees By Reuters

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<span>© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: A man sits outside a Woolworths supermarket following the easing of restrictions implemented to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Sydney, Australia, June 16, 2020. Picture taken June 16, 2020. REUTERS/Loren Elliott/file</span><br />
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<p>(Reuters) -The wage law enforcement agency of the Australian state of Victoria on Wednesday said it has filed more than 1,000 charges against top grocer Woolworths Group, alleging failure to pay A$1 million ($659,000) in long-service leave to over 1,200 former employees.</p>
<p>The Wage Inspectorate Victoria (WIV) said that between 2018 and 2021, Woolworths did not pay more than A$960,000 in long-service leave entitlements to 1,199 former employees.</p>
<p>The agency added that the company’s unit Woolstar also failed to pay more than A$45,000 in long-service leave entitlements to 36 former employees during the same period.</p>
<p>“Victorians expect businesses with significant payroll resources to get this stuff right. They’d be disappointed to see a household name facing underpayment allegations,” Robert Hortle, the commissioner of Wage Inspectorate Victoria said.</p>
<p>A spokesperson for Woolworths told Reuters that the grocer self-reported the underpayment issue to the agency in February last year.</p>
<p>Under the Victoria Long Service Leave Act 2018, employees who have worked continuously with one employer for at least seven years are provided long-service leave.</p>
<p>Woolworths, which has been facing lawsuits and civil proceedings for underpaying its workers, has been struggling to resolve the issues since 2019. </p>
<p>The Wage Inspectorate Victoria has filed similar charges against telecom giant Optus, brokerage firm Commsec and lender Bankwest.</p>
<p>($1 = 1.5175 Australian dollars)</p>
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