Australia’s first wage theft laws set to pass in Victoria
By Ben Schneiders and Sumeyya Ilanbey, 📷: Scott Mcnaughton
The first laws in Australia to make the deliberate underpayment of wages a crime appear likely to pass Victoria’s upper house as early as this week.
The Andrews government’s Wage Theft Bill includes hefty fines and up to 10 years’ jail for rogue employers, with a team of new inspectors empowered to police the laws…
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Crossbench state MPs Andy Meddick, Rod Barton, Fiona Patten, Stuart Grimley and Tania Maxwell have told The Age they will support the bill.
“Opponents of this bill keep pointing to the ‘complexity’ of paying staff,” Ms Patten said. “But it’s not like we’re hearing all these cases of employers overpaying people, are we?”
Read full article on the Sydney Morning Herald.