The role of accountants and bookkeepers has been in particular
focus following this month's Court decision holding an
accounting practice responsible for underpayments by a client for
whom it was providing payroll services. The decision follows a
series of prosecutions and decisions in which principal
contractors, franchisers, and human resources professionals have
been found to be legally "involved" in breaches by an
employer of the Fair Work Act and therefore liable for penalties
and compensation.
Natalie James, the Fair Work Ombudsman, has been unequivocal
that the FWO has and will continue to adventurously test the limits
of the accessorial liability provision in the Fair Work Act. The
FWO's drive to bring accessories within the scope of
prosecutions is, in part, because many of the employers they
prosecute are no longer solvent. Speaking in July last year, Ms
James reported that in the 2015/16 financial year
92% of prosecutions brought by the FWO
