Thousands of workers compensated as Hamilton Island operators address wage errors
The most affected staff included food and beverage supervisors, chefs, front office workers, and housekeepers
Hamilton Island Enterprises Limited (HIE) and its subsidiary Hamilton Island Shared Services Pty Ltd (HISS) have collectively back-paid more than $28.1 million to employees following an investigation by the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO).
The companies, responsible for operating accommodation and ancillary services on Hamilton Island, have also entered into an Enforceable Undertaking (EU) to ensure compliance with workplace laws.
The underpayments, which impacted 2152 current and former employees, spanned from December 2014 to December 2022. The most affected staff included food and beverage supervisors, chefs, front office workers, and housekeepers, many of whom were covered by the Hospitality Industry (General) Awards 2010 and 2020, among others.
How the underpayments occurred
The FWO’s investigation, launched in 2020, found that annual salaries paid to many full-time employees failed to meet their minimum Award entitlements when factoring in overtime, shift work, penalty rates, and allowances. The most common underpayments related to:
✔ Overtime rates
✔ Weekend and public holiday penalty rates
✔ Broken-shift allowances
✔ Annual leave loading
The largest single back-payment exceeded $119,000, while the average amount repaid was $8000 per employee. A further $250,984, plus $10,954 in superannuation, remains unclaimed for 32 employees yet to be located. Workers can check if they are owed wages via the Fair Work Ombudsman’s website.
Commitment to compliance
In addition to back-paying affected staff, the companies must:
📌 Rectify all identified underpayments by 30 June 2024
📌 Commission an independent audit of salaried employee payments, reporting results to HIE’s Board and the Fair Work Ombudsman
📌 Provide workplace relations training to key personnel
📌 Hire a dedicated Compliance Officer to monitor wage compliance
📌 Establish an employee hotline and email for workplace queries
📌 Conduct quarterly employee feedback sessions
As part of the Enforceable Undertaking, the companies will also make a $750,000 contrition payment, with $500,000 allocated to the Commonwealth Consolidated Revenue Fund and $250,000 to the Cleaning Accountability Framework, a not-for-profit promoting fair pay and conditions in the cleaning industry.
Fair Work Ombudsman: Businesses must ensure compliance
Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth highlighted the ongoing issue of underpayments due to fixed salaries that fail to account for additional hours and entitlements.
“Businesses paying annual salaries cannot take a ‘set-and-forget’ approach to paying their workers. Employers must ensure wages are sufficient to cover all lawful entitlements for the hours their employees actually work,” she said.
Booth commended HIE and HISS for their cooperation and commitment to rectifying non-compliance issues while ensuring that future wage errors are prevented.
Employers and employees seeking workplace rights advice can visit www.fairwork.gov.au or call the Fair Work Infoline on 13 13 94. An interpreter service is available on 13 14 50.
