UPDATE 5pm: Thales chief executive officer Chris Jenkins has said it was mostly middle manager, professional staff and technical staff who were affected by an underpayment issue that resulted in the back-payment of $7.44 million to 407 current and former employees.
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"We have made it clear that these errors should not have occurred, we're sorry they happened, and that having discovered the problem we fixed it as a matter of urgency and put in place measures to ensure it doesn't happen again," Mr Jenkins said.
"The major workplace unions were advised at an early stage and consulted on the best way to rectify the issue. The Fair Work Ombudsman was also engaged prior to us commencing compensation payments."
It is not known how many current and former Bendigo employees were affected, although when Thales told the Bendigo Advertiser in January that 35 local workers had been back-paid, they were employees at the time.
EARLIER: Thales Australia has back-paid workers more than $7 million in wages, superannuation and interest under a court-enforceable undertaking with the Fair Work Ombudsman.
The company last year disclosed it had made an error that led to underpayment of minimum wages, overtime, annual leave entitlements and superannuation between 2011 and 2018, and resulted in record-keeping breaches.
Fair Work began investigating the issue after the ombudsman was notified.
Subsequently 407 current and former employees have received a total of $7.44 million in back-pay, with individual amounts ranging from $2593 up to $158,978.
Inspectors found the underpayments largely occurred because Thales failed to sufficiently check that the salary contracts it entered into with employees were above the minimum salaries listed in enterprise agreements and awards.
In January, Thales confirmed 35 employees in Bendigo were among 240 across Australia identified at that time as being affected by underpayments
Under the undertaking with the ombudsman, Thales must apologise to its employees for underpaying them and implement a new payroll system to improve its wages and record-keeping practices.
It must also have an external auditor conduct audits of employees' pay and conditions later this year and again next year, and report the results to the ombudsman.
Thales will also make a $200,000 payment to the Commonwealth's Consolidated Revenue Fund.
Fair Work Ombudsman Sandra Parker said that the regulator considered an undertaking appropriate after the company back-paid its workers and out significant resources towards overhauling its workplace practices.
"This outcome sends a strong message to employers that if you don't prioritise workplace compliance, you risk underpaying staff on a large scale and facing a massive back-payment bill," Ms Parker said.
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Natalie Croxon
Reporter at the Illawarra Mercury, mostly covering social affairs. Previously of the Bendigo Advertiser, Northern Daily Leader and Quirindi Advocate. Our Watch award winner.
Reporter at the Illawarra Mercury, mostly covering social affairs. Previously of the Bendigo Advertiser, Northern Daily Leader and Quirindi Advocate. Our Watch award winner.
