"Migrant workers gets over USD165,000 after employer's wage violations,"

A migrant worker in New Zealand won over $165,000 after the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) found that she was underpaid by her employer for years.

Deepika Deepika came to New Zealand on a student visa and was employed by Shivaji Enterprises Limited (Shivaji Ltd) in September 2015, initially without an employment agreement.

She provided service for a restaurant of Shivaji Ltd by serving customers, washing dishes, cleaning the floor and tables, and stocking the drinks fridge.

Deepika also worked for another restaurant of Shivaji Ltd in Wainoni until February 2020.

However, the labour inspector found and reported to the ERA that Deepika was "not paid minimum wages for all the hours she worked, insufficiently remunerated whilst working public holidays, not paid for unworked public holidays that fell on otherwise working days, not paid holiday pay upon the ending of the employment relationship and was not paid sick leave at her correct rate."...

Shivaji Enterprises is already removed from the New Zealand Companies Register in February this year, while its sole director and shareholder Rajani Panwar and principal Beer Panwar left New Zealand for Brisbane in 2021.

According to the inspector, the Panwars failed to provide coherent or accurate wage time or holiday records that was asked from them...

The ERA accepted the findings of the labour inspector regarding the unpaid wages and sided with Deepika on the matter...

Shivaji Ltd has been ordered to pay Deepika $140,262.64 for cumulative arrears of wages and holiday pay, as well as $40,000 for penalties...