As if the hefty penalty wasn’t enough, the company was also ordered to pay an additional $35,000 in arrears
A South Island-based tour company has been hit with a five-figure fine after a Labour Inspectorate investigation uncovered a number of serious employment breaches.
Alps Travel, which caters mainly to tourists from China, was ordered to pay $75,000 in penalties and more than $35,000 in arrears by the Employment Relations Authority.
“Employees were working very long hours while being paid a daily rate, regardless of how many hours they worked,” said Labour Inspectorate regional manager Jeanie Borsboom. “This meant they were not being paid minimum wage, and they were also left without holiday pay.”
Borsboom also noted that Alps Travel failed to keep accurate time, wage, holiday or leave records and also made unlawful deductions from employees as a means of disciplining them for things like bus damage or negative customer feedback – measures which Borsboom deemed “completely unacceptable” under New Zealand employment law.
Initially, the company sought to avoid providing minimum standards by saying their workers were contractors, but went on to acknowledge during the Inspectorate’s investigation this was not the case, and accepted that minimum standards should be applied.
“Employers in this industry should note that log books will not fully meet their record keeping obligations, that they cannot contract out of providing employees with their entitlements, and that daily rates will not necessarily meet the minimum wage,” said Borsboom.
“Where the Inspectorate finds employers seeking to gain an unfair advantage over their law-abiding competitors by breaching minimum standards, we will hold them to account, and we will be transparent in our dealings with these employers so consumers can make informed choices,” she added.
In addition to paying the fine and reimbursements, Alps Travel has also had its Transport Service Licence for both passenger and rental services revoked by the New Zealand Transport Agency.
