Fed: Chili restaurant to be prosecuted through workplace laws

AAP General News (Australia)
08-03-2007
Fed: Chili restaurant to be prosecuted through workplace laws

CANBERRA, Aug 3 AAP - A Wollongong restaurant that allegedly made rostered staff wait
for up to an hour before deciding it was busy enough for them to start work, will be prosecuted,
the Workplace Ombudsman says.

Ombudsman Nicholas Wilson today announced the prosecution of Brinker Australia Ltd
which was trading as Chili's Texas Grill.

Mr Wilson said he would allege the restaurant breached the workplace rights of a 19-year-old
employee Kirrily Piper through the terms of her Australian Workplace Agreement (AWA)

The Ombudsman alleges Chili Texas Grill did not provide Ms Piper, who has since left
the restaurant, with the required information regarding her rights when making her AWA.

He alleges the restaurant failed to ensure that the worker had ready access to the
AWA in writing before the agreement was approved, that it failed to lodge the AWA within
14 days and that it failed to advise Ms Piper of her core hours of employment and did
not provide her with a minimum of 20 hours' paid employment each fortnight.

Ms Piper had earlier alleged she was sometimes made to hang around for up to an hour
after she was due to start her rostered shift before management deemed the restaurant
busy enough for her shift to begin.

Mr Wilson said his agency was still investigating claims that young workers were made
to supply their own money floats each day so that cash could be deducted when a customer
absconded without paying the bill.

"Employers should be warned, making an AWA is not a licence to trample on the rights
of workers, especially young workers," Mr Wilson said.

"The Workplace Ombudsman will simply not tolerate it."

ACTU president Sharan Burrow said a whole new set of workplace laws were required to
prevent workplace exploitation such as in this alleged instance.

"What is happening here is you've got laws that are allowing young people, incredibly
vulnerable, to be ripped off," she told AAP.

"What is really appalling is that the newly-named ombudsman only goes to investigate
these environments when they're raised in the media.

"What we want is a set of laws that protect people from the get-go."

AAP dep/it/bwl

KEYWORD: CHILI

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