Fair Work Ombudsman v Statewide Security (WA) Pty Ltd

In the matter of Fair Work Ombudsman v Statewide Security (WA) Pty Ltd, the respondents were found to have contravened the Fair Work Act and the Security Services Industry Award 2010, leading to a penalty hearing before the court on 28 February 2022. The respondents, Statewide Security (WA) Pty Ltd and its director and secretary, were accused of multiple breaches of employment laws concerning the underpayment of employees Ms Mertens, Mr Jones, and Mr Vuong. The Fair Work Ombudsman brought the case against the respondents, asserting that the company had failed to pay employees their minimum rates, overtime rates, penalty rates, and leave entitlements as required by the Award and the Fair Work Act.

The court was tasked with determining the appropriate penalty for the respondents' breaches of sections 712(3) and 716(5) of the Fair Work Act, as declared by Judge Kendall in an earlier order. The court had to consider the separate contraventions, whether these contraventions should be dealt with individually or aggregated, and the appropriate penalty for each contravention. The court also had to consider the overall penalties and ensure they were appropriate and proportionate to the conduct of the respondents.

The court found that the respondents' actions constituted serious breaches of workplace laws, which were deliberate and involved multiple contraventions over an extended period. The court applied the principles outlined in the High Court's decision in Commonwealth of Australia v Director, Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate (2015) 258 CLR 482; [2015] HCA 46 and considered the totality of the respondents' conduct. The court concluded that an order for the respondents to pay a pecuniary penalty was appropriate, ensuring compliance and deterrence as intended by the Fair Work Act.

Accordingly, the court ordered the first respondent to pay a pecuniary penalty of $61,500 and the second respondent to pay a penalty of $12,500. The penalties were to be paid to the Commonwealth within 28 days of the order. The applicant was granted liberty to apply for enforcement if the penalties were not paid.