An Auckland restaurant and its former director have been ordered to pay almost $400,000 after authorities found migrant workers were systematically underpaid and subjected to serious breaches of New Zealand employment law.
As per NZ Herald, the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) found that The Indian Taste Ltd and its former sole director, Krishna Khandelwal, failed to meet multiple employment obligations, resulting in significant wage repayments and penalties.
Under the ruling, the restaurant must pay nearly $200,000 in unpaid wages to seven affected employees, while Khandelwal has been fined $177,300 for his role in the breaches. A further $35,000 compensation payment will be shared among the seven workers.
The ERA found that employees were often required to work between 60 and 90 hours a week while being paid for only around 30 hours. Some workers were also required to work unpaid periods of up to two weeks when they first started at the business.
Labour Inspectorate migrant exploitation manager Sam Mills told NZ Herald that the workers were particularly vulnerable due to language barriers and limited knowledge of New Zealand employment laws.
“The workers were ruthlessly exploited for the personal gain of the company and its owner,” Mills said, describing the breaches as “persistent, deliberate and designed to extract labour at an unlawful discount”.
The investigation began after multiple complaints were received between March and December 2024. Authorities uncovered a range of violations, including failure to pay minimum wages, unlawful deductions, denial of holiday entitlements, charging premiums to secure employment and maintaining inaccurate wage and leave records.
ERA member Matthew Piper said Khandelwal had direct control over the company’s actions and benefited financially from the unlawful practices.
“As the shareholder of The Indian Taste, Mr Khandelwal received a financial benefit for his actions by underpaying workers and in doing so also failed to compete fairly with other businesses providing similar products and who complied with the law,” Piper said.
The authority found the exploitation had wider consequences for workers, with some forced into financial hardship, taking personal loans and borrowing money at high interest rates while struggling to support family members overseas.
Mills said the penalty served as a warning to employers who attempt to take advantage of vulnerable workers.
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment has encouraged workers who believe they have experienced unfair treatment to seek confidential support through its contact services.
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