"Nelson restaurant 'ripped off' employees during quiet hours, must pay $30,000,"

A Nelson eatery has been ordered to pay $30,000 to three employees who were not paid for work done during the restaurant's quiet time.

Between 2014 and 2018, three employees at Zara's Turkish Kebabs and Cafe were not paid for hours worked in between the lunch and dinner services, the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) said.

The company, Mirac Limited, owned and operated by Omer Akbaba, was ordered by the ERA to pay $30,886.44 in wage arrears, holiday pay and interest to the three employees...

Additionally, Mirac Limited must pay $18,000 in penalties for breaching the Holidays Act, for failing to pay the minimum wage and for failing to maintain proper wages and time records...

ERA member Michael Loftus said the employees were migrant workers and inherently vulnerable as they were unfamiliar with New Zealand laws and regulations...