Fair Work Ombudsman v Mhoney Pty Ltd

The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) brought proceedings against Mhoney Pty Ltd (Mhoney) in the Federal Court of Australia concerning alleged contraventions of the *Fair Work Act 2009* (Cth). The dispute centred on Mhoney's failure to pay a former employee, Ms. Kym Davies, her entitlements under the National Employment Standards (NES) and the relevant modern award, specifically the *Fast Food Industry Award 2010*. The FWO alleged that Mhoney had contravened section 45 of the Act by failing to pay Ms. Davies her minimum entitlements, including accrued but untaken annual leave and redundancy pay, upon the termination of her employment.

The primary legal issue before Burchardt J was whether Mhoney had contravened section 45 of the *Fair Work Act 2009* (Cth) by failing to pay Ms. Davies her accrued annual leave and redundancy pay upon termination of her employment. This required the Court to determine the extent of Mhoney's obligations under the NES and the *Fast Food Industry Award 2010* in relation to these entitlements and whether Mhoney had met those obligations.

Burchardt J found that Mhoney had indeed contravened section 45 of the Act. The Court reasoned that the NES, as set out in Schedule 1 of the Act, mandates that employees are entitled to payment for accrued but untaken annual leave upon termination of employment. Furthermore, the *Fast Food Industry Award 2010* stipulated redundancy pay entitlements for employees whose employment was terminated due to redundancy. The evidence presented established that Mhoney had failed to pay Ms. Davies these entitlements, thereby breaching its statutory and award obligations.

Consequently, Burchardt J ordered Mhoney Pty Ltd to pay the outstanding amounts to Ms. Davies, representing her accrued annual leave and redundancy pay. The Court also imposed a pecuniary penalty on Mhoney for its contraventions of the *Fair Work Act 2009* (Cth).