16/07/2025
// Vietnamese eateries that exploited migrant workers ordered to pay a whopping $802,000 //
The Federal Court has ordered Mr Mai back-pay $407,546 plus interest and superannuation owed to the 36 workers he underpaid as the operator of a ‘Mr Viet” restaurant in a food court outlet in Adelaide’s Chinatown precinct.
In addition, the Court imposed a $256,000 penalty against Mr Mai and a $130,000 penalty against his wife and manager of the “Mr Viet’ eateries for her involvement in the contraventions.
The penalties were imposed for a range of contraventions including:
• giving false records to Fair Work Inspectors,
• underpaying or not paying minimum rates, overtime, weekend and public holiday loading,
• failing to compensate employees for taking no meal breaks and
• employees being unreasonably required to spend their own money (forcing them to buy their bosses and other employees bubble tea).
The underpaid workers were mostly international students aged under 25 working in casual customer service, kitchen, and bar and waitstaff roles.
The Fair Work Ombudsman has filed 146 litigations against employers involving visa holder workers and secured nearly $23 million in penalties in cases that have included visa holder workers, in the last seven financial years (to June 2024).