Ballarat massage parlour worker allegedly underpaid $13,000

Austop Natural Therapy and Supplies Pty Ltd, which operates a massage parlour trading as Yin's Chinese Massage Parlour in Bacchus Marsh, previously operated another parlour in Ballarat.

There is no allegation against the current owner of the Ballarat business.

The Fair Work Ombudsman is taking the company and its director, Yusen Yin, and company secretary Wenhua Liu, to the Federal Circuit Court.

The accounting firm for the company, Keith Golding and Associates, will also be taken to court, accused of being involved with the false-records breaches under accessorial liability laws.

It's alleged that a worker was only paid a percentage of the total price of each massage performed instead of an hourly rate of pay, which resulted in the underpayment.

The worker was employed between December 2016 and July 2017, and their superannuation, as well as annual leave and weekend, penalty, and overtime rates, were affected.

The company also allegedly failed to ensure she did not work on more than six consecutive days.

The Ombudsman alleges the company failed to issue pay slips to staff, and the company and its accountant provided inspectors with records, including pay slips, they knew to be false or misleading.

It will also seek a court order requiring the company to display a workplace notice detailing information about lawful employee entitlements and how to contact the Ombudsman.

The worker is still owed a fraction of the total underpayment of $13,522.

The hearing is listed for April 30.

Employers and employees can visit www.fairwork.gov.au or call the Fair Work Infoline on 13 13 94 for free advice and assistance about their rights and obligations in the workplace. A free interpreter service is available on 13 14 50.