ARTICLE · 02 OCTOBER 2022

Skipping meal breaks can cost businesses

Clifford Gouldson Lawyers

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Failing to provide sufficient meal breaks can cost a business in penalties and backdated entitlements for employees.

AustraliaEmployment and HR

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Even something as simple as failing to provide sufficient meal breaks can cost a business in penalties and backdated entitlement payments to employees.

A Federal Circuit Court of Australia case from 2017 provides a useful example of both the types of issues that employers regularly get into trouble for and the importance of taking the right steps to acknowledge shortcomings and rectify any breaches against applicable industrial legislation.

In the case of Fair Work Ombudsman v Something Aussie Pty Ltd * three employees of a small retail business, which sold Australian themed gifts to tourists, complained to the Fair Work Ombudsman and sought a civil remedy against their employer for numerous underpayments.

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