Stuff
Former Smiths City staff who were required to attend unpaid meetings will be paid in full for their time after a compromise was reached. All payments were expected to be made by the middle of August. For at least 15 years, every Smiths City store in the country held a meeting of sales staff for 15 minutes every morning, covering topics ranging from sales targets to promotions. Staff were not paid for the meetings and the time was not recorded as hours worked, resulting in some staff not receiving the minimum wage once the extra 15 minutes was taken into account. The company argued the meetings were not compulsory and no disciplinary action was taken against staff for not attending them, but the court found otherwise. Chief Judge Christina Inglis said the expectation to attend, and pressure placed on staff to do so, was direct and forceful.”
Mountain Scene
A debtors’ claim against a liquidated local building company’s expected to resume this week.
In their fifth report into Fowler Homes Southern Lakes (FHSL), liquidators Colin Gower and Tim Ward, of BDO Christchurch, say the claim’s been progressed before the Disputes Tribunal, but given it was adjourned to May 12, ‘‘we are not able to provide a further update in relation to this matter’’.
FHSL’s licensee and sole director John Mansfield put the company into voluntary liquidation on March 15, 2019 it came about 24 hours after Mansfield told
Mountain Scene’s sister paper,
Otago Daily Times, he hadn’t liquidated and the ‘‘rumour mill’’ was ‘‘obviously in overdrive’’.
Chloe Ranford/Stuff
Smiths City still owes thousands to former employees for unpaid meetings. Staff were not paid for the meetings and the time was not recorded as hours worked, resulting in some staff not receiving the minimum wage once the extra 15 minutes was taken into account. The company argued the meetings were not compulsory and no disciplinary action was taken against staff for not attending them, but the court found otherwise. Chief Judge Christina Inglis said the expectation to attend, and pressure placed on staff to do so, was direct and forceful.” If the 101 former employees make themselves known to receivers, they will be paid.
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