The Fair Work Ombudsman will be auditing up to 200 businesses across south-west Victoria as part of a new compliance campaign.
Running over a three month period, the campaign will focus on businesses located in Warrnambool, Colac and Camperdown and will see inspectors check that employers are paying the correct minimum hourly rates, penalty rates, allowances and loadings.
The campaign will run across various sectors including the restaurant and caf industry.
According to Fair Work Ombudsman Natalie James, requests for assistance in the region jumped 27 percent between 2011 and 2014.
“It’s important we check that workers are being paid correctly, but we also want to be pro-active about ensuring employers understand their obligations,” says James.
“Inspectors will make a number of face-to-face visits to businesses during the campaign so they can offer employers tailored assistance to rectify any non-compliance issues and put processes in place to ensure they get it right in the future.”