Retirement village group Lifestyle SA accused of underpaying workers over three years
Chief Court Reporter Sean Fewster
AdelaideNow
August 13, 2012
A RETIREMENT village company underpaid its workers $1.1 million over three years and forced one to work 10 consecutive days, a court has been told.
Lifestyle SA allegedly paid its workers a flat rate of $50 to monitor emergency pagers over shifts lasting between nine and 16 hours.
The company is being prosecuted by the Fair Work Ombudsman. The agency says Lifestyle SA failed to pay minimum wages to 21 part-time and 14 casual staff.
It has asked the Federal Court to order the company to reimburse workers within 21 days.
"Lifestyle SA paid the employees a flat rate of $50 for each shift," its court papers assert.
"It did not pay the employees an hourly rate ... it failed to pay the federal minimum wage.
"Between 5pm on December 21, 2007 and 5pm on January 1, 2008, an employee worked continuously at Lifestyle SA's request or requirement."
Lifestyle SA operates 11 retirement villages.
It began as a joint venture between Gordon Pickard and property developers Stephen and Roxanne Norris, now company directors.
In its documents, the Ombudsman says Lifestyle SA underpaid its "pager monitors" - who kept watch on residents' wellbeing and respond to emergencies.
Yesterday, lawyers for both sides asked the matter be referred to a mediation conference.
The case was adjourned until October.
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