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Black v Young Republic & Anor

Black v Young Republic & Anor

Case [2012] FMCA 729 24 August 2012

Breach of Contract

Unjust Enrichment

Compensatory Damages

Small Claims Procedure

Employment & Labour Law

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FEDERAL MAGISTRATES COURT OF AUSTRALIA

BLACK v YOUNG REPUBLIC & ANOR

[2012] FMCA 729

INDUSTRIAL LAW – Small claims jurisdiction – unpaid wages – unpaid accrued annual leave upon cessation of employment – no appearance by or for the respondents – application granted.

Fair Work Act 1999, ss.12, 87, 90, 545, 548
Federal Magistrates Court Rules 2001, r.13.03C

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Applicant:

REBECCA BLACK

First Respondent:

YOUNG REPUBLIC - ACN 150 507 583

Second Respondent:

ANDREW YANG

File Number:

SYG 1649 of 2012

Judgment of:

Nicholls FM

Hearing date:

17 August 2012

Date of Last Submission:

17 August 2012

Delivered at:

Sydney

Delivered on:

24 August 2012

REPRESENTATION

The Applicant:

In Person

The First Respondent:

No Appearance

The Second Respondent:

No Appearance

ORDERS

The first and second respondent contravened the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth).
The first and second respondent pay the applicant the sum of $6,971.86 less tax within 28 days of the date of this order.
The first and second respondent pay the applicant’s costs set in the amount of $691.00 within 28 days of this order.

FEDERAL MAGISTRATES
COURT OF AUSTRALIA
AT SYDNEY

SYG 1649 of 2012

REBECCA BLACK

Applicant

And

YOUNG REPUBLIC - ACN 150 507 583

First Respondent

ANDREW YANG

Second Respondent

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

This is an application by Ms Rebecca Black (“the applicant”), made on 27 July 2012 and amended in Court on 17 August 2012, pursuant to the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (“FWA”). The applicant elected to make that application under the small claims procedure, as provided for in s.548 of the FWA.
The applicant alleges that her former employer, Young Republic (“the first respondent”) and one of the co-founders of that business, Mr Andrew Yang (“the second respondent”), breached the National Employment Standards by failing to pay to her, upon the cessation of her employment, her accrued annual leave. Further, that the respondents breached a safety net contractual entitlement by failing to pay her salary while she was employed for a period of just over two months.
The applicant sought the payment of $564.08 and $6,407.78, respectively, as remedy for those alleged breaches. Further, the applicant sought costs associated with the making, and prosecution, of her application. That is the filing fee of $157 and hearing fee of $534, imposed by this Court.

Small Claims Jurisdiction

Section 548 of the FWA relevantly provides that:
“(1) Proceedings are to be dealt with as small claims proceedings under this section if:
(a) a person applies for an order (other than a pecuniary penalty order) under Division 2 from a magistrates court or the Federal Magistrates Court; and
(b) the order relates to an amount referred to in subsection (1A); and
(c) the person indicates, in a manner prescribed by the regulations or by…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading Black v Young Republic & Anor

Details

AGLC: Black v Young Republic & Anor [2012] FMCA 729
Case: [2012] FMCA 729
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Federal Magistrates Court of Australia, Rebecca Black ("the applicant") filed an application against Young Republic (ACN 150 507 583) ("the first respondent") and Andrew Yang ("the second respondent") under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth). The applicant alleged that both respondents breached the National Employment Standards by failing to pay her accrued annual leave upon the cessation of her employment, and that they breached a safety net contractual entitlement by not paying her salary for the period she was employed, except for sporadic payments totalling $900. The applicant sought the payment of $564.08 for unpaid accrued annual leave and $6,407.78 for unpaid wages, along with costs associated with the initiation and prosecution of the application.

The legal issues the court had to decide were whether the application fell within the small claims jurisdiction of the Court, and if the applicant had successfully proven her claims. The court found that the application was within the small claims procedure, as the claims related to amounts required to be paid under the Fair Work Act and a safety net contractual entitlement, and the total claim was under the limit of $20,000. The court also found that the applicant had successfully proven her claims, as her evidence was unchallenged and persuasive.

The court ordered that the first and second respondents pay the applicant the sum of $6,971.86 less tax within 28 days of the date of the order, and pay her costs in the amount of $691.00 within 28 days of the order. The court also ordered that the first and second respondents contravened the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth).

Orders