An international student was paid as little as 47 cents an hour to work at a 7-Eleven in Sydney, a law firm today told the media.
ABC Four Corner and Fairfax Media’s investigation into 7-Eleven’s half pay scam last year revealed how several employees manning the 7/11 across the country were paid way below.
The law firm Maurice Blackburn Lawyers today revealed that one staff member was paid as little as $0.47 an hour. The firm said Sohail, a Pakistani student was paid one lump sum of $325 for about 685 hours of work at a Sydney store.
Former 7-Eleven worker Pranay Alawala -- one of two workers whose allegations sparked a joint Fairfax/4 Corners investigation into the wage allegations -- said migrant workers frequently don't know their rights. Mr Alawala worked in three 7-Eleven stories in Brisbane, where his pay varied between $12 to $15 an hour. He also performed "training" work for a week, for which he was not paid at all.
When he complained, Mr Alawala's employer told him they would tell Immigration officials that he had been working too many hours, which was in breach of his student visa.
Alawala, who no longer works for the chain, has recently received $33,000 in back pay.
"On his wages it would take a day's work to be able to buy a cup of coffee. It would take two days' work to be able to buy a sandwich," Maurice Blackburn Principal Giri Sivaraman told reporters in Brisbane.
He said the allegations were "probably Australia's greatest employment law scandal."
The half-pay scam is currently been investigated by a two person independent panel headed by 7-Eleven’s harshest critic Professor Allan Fels AO, with the second member being Professor David Cousins AM.
