Chefs not paid for months
A Korean restaurant chain in Auckland has been ordered to pay $101,663 in fines, compensation, outstanding wages and holiday pay after failing to pay two chefs for months of work.
The Employment Relations Authority found JNA Holdings failed to meet its legal obligations to Hee Jung Ryu and Do Hyung Lim, between November 2018 and September 2019.
Lim knew JNA director Sung Il Kim from a previous job and started working for the company as a chef in November 2018. Ryu, Lim’s partner, was offered work as an apprentice chef in April 2019. Both signed written employment agreements which were signed by Kim on behalf of JNA. From the start, the record of hours worked at JNA’s restaurants, which were unnamed in the authority’s determination, was patchy.
However, employees were generally paid on time.
That changed when Kim left New Zealand in mid-July 2019 and could not come back due to immigration issues. From then, neither Ryu nor Lim were paid in full on a regular basis by JNA.
Ryu spoke with Kim several times while he was overseas about the irregular payments. Various excuses were offered, Ryu said.
Ryu told Kim she would leave, explaining that she and Lim had no money. The couple had to give up their home and had to sleep on a friend’s couch. Ryu left in late September and did not receive any final pay. Authority member Nicola Craig found Ryu was constructively dismissed by JNA.
Lim said he was suddenly told in September 2019 that the restaurant where he worked was no longer going to be operated by JNA.
This information came from the previous owner of the business, who arrived in the restaurant one day and announced he was going to take it over. Lim was unable to work at the new business as his visa was linked with JNA and the business owner who took over was not prepared to offer Lim a rate sufficient for the visa requirements.
Craig determined that Lim was unjustifiably dismissed.
Craig ordered JNA to pay Ryu
$11,831 for lost wages, $10,000 as compensation, $6928 in wage arrears and $1702 in unpaid holiday pay. The company was also ordered to pay Lim $15,249 for lost wages, $10,000 as compensation,
$29,535 for wage arrears and $4973 for unpaid holiday pay.
JNA was also ordered to pay an
$8000 fine for breaches of the Wage Protection Act. The fine is to be split, with $2000 going to Ryu,
$2000 to Lim and $4000 to the Crown. Finally, $3374 plus the
$71.56 filing fee is to be paid to the couple for their legal costs.