Cafe worker awarded $9000 for one day’s work

A Wellington woman who worked for one day at a cafe without pay has been awarded

$9000 by the Employment Relations Authority. Helen Mawhinney completed a day’s work at a cafe run by Sfizio Ltd after a promising interview, but was told at the end of the shift that it was part of an unpaid trial. Upset by that, she declined a job offer and demanded to be paid as she had not agreed to unpaid work. Authority member Michele Ryan said the line between Mawhinney participating in a competency assessment and performing work was crossed. Mawhinney was awarded

$7000 in compensation, plus $119 in wages and $1890 in lieu of four weeks’ notice. The authority considered her to be an employee at the end of the interview, even though an employment agreement was not signed.