A Southland dairy farm and its owner have lost an Employment Court appeal against $215,000 in penalties imposed by the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) last year for exploiting vulnerable workers.
This is the second legal setback this year for the business, Rural Practice Limited (RPL), and its owner Reza Abdul-Jabbar. In July both were found to have obstructed the earlier ERA investigation into employment standards breaches which affected three Indonesia workers and penalised a further $15,000.
The original ERA determination found that between December 2017 and February 2022, RPL and Abdul-Jabbar breached minimum employment standards by: Failing to pay the workers the minimum wage; not paying holiday and leave pay appropriately; making unlawful deductions from their wages; requiring the workers to pay premiums and failing to keep accurate employment records.
Abdul-Jabbar was a religious leader in his community and had served as a religious advisor and mentor for at least one of the three Indonesian workers he was found to have exploited.
In the latest case before the Employment Court, RPL and Mr Abdul-Jabbar appealed the ERA decision to penalise them $215,000, arguing that the penalties imposed were excessive.
In respect of these arguments, Judge J C Holden said: “The Authority found that there was a clear imbalance of power between the employees and Mr Abdul-Jabbar and the plaintiffs took advantage of the employees as new immigrants from Indonesia, who lacked knowledge of local law and employment requirements in New Zealand. The Authority also noted some other matters that disadvantaged the employees; they were vulnerable workers.”
In dismissing the appeal, Judge J C Holden said, “The level of penalties is proportionate having regard to the multiple, systemic, and intentional breaches found by the Authority, as well as the financial impact of those breaches.”
Brendon Strieker, Labour Inspectorate Compliance Manager for the Southern Region, welcomed the Court’s decision. “It reinforces that employers cannot hide behind complexity or goodwill when they fail to meet basic legal obligations.”
MBIE encourages anyone who thinks they or someone else has been treated unfairly in the workplace to contact them at: 0800 20 90 20
Related earlier story:
