Employers – Personal fines for Accessorial Liability

The Fair Work Ombudsman has released details confirming that over the 2015-2016 financial year, prosecutions against employers have included orders against the people making the decisions that breached the Fair Work Act, or other industrial law.

People making decisions in organisations, including human resources managers, external advisors, recruiters, and directors of corporate entities, need to be vigilant to adopt best practice and ensure compliance with industrial law. Employers seeking to wind up their companies in order to avoid prosecution will likely face personal penalties towards the upper end of the maximum penalty for reasons of deliberately trying to avoid lawful obligations.

Employers seeking to employ the vulnerable members of the community, including young workers, people with disabilities, older workers, migrant workers, or people at some other form of disadvantage, need to be particularly aware of the Fair Work Ombudsman’s policies directed towards protecting these workers, and bringing actions against employers (and people) who infringe on the vulnerable employee’s rights.

Penalties range from approximately $10,000.00 for an individual, to approximately $50,000.00 for a corporation, per breach. In circumstances of multiple breaches, penalties could be in the nature of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

For information or advice in relation to responding to an investigation by the Fair Work Ombudsman, or allegations concerning a breach of an industrial agreement, please contact James Welch at Access Law Group.