University of NSW hit with $213k penalty over ‘systemic’ record-keeping failures following Fair Work action

The University of New South Wales (UNSW) has been fined more than $200,000 over “systemic” record-keeping failures over a five-year period. The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) imposed the $213,120 fine on the Sydney-based university on Wednesday, after UNSW admitted to breaching the Fair Work Act over a five-year period between 2017-2022. The legal action focused on a sample of 63 affected casual academic staff in UNSW’s Business School, based at Kensington. Records of the hours worked, rates of pay and details of casual loading entitlements were not made properly, the FWO said in a statement. “UNSW also admitted breaching the Fair Work Act by failing to include casual loading information on pay slips,” the statement continued. The FWO was first put on notice in 2018 and an underpayment investigation into UNSW was formally launched in 2020 after the university self-reported widespread underpayments. Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth said during the underpayment investigation, it became clear to Fair Work inspectors that UNSW had not voluntarily disclosed nor corrected its record-keeping failures after being put on notice. “It is completely unacceptable for an employer’s record-keeping practices to be so poor that they prevent our inspectors from assessing what hours its employees have worked and whether employees have received their full lawful entitlements,” Ms Booth said. “A litigation was the only appropriate response,” she said. “Record-keeping is a crucial part of compliance with workplace laws, and the penalty imposed is a warning to all employers to prioritise getting their records right.” Judge Brana Obradovic found that “UNSW’s failures were systemic, longstanding and long-lasting” and that despite UNSW senior management being alerted to the record-keeping failures in 2018, it took them “many years” to rectify the breaches. “UNSW has not provided any explanation as to why simple time sheets were not implemented as soon as the first complaint was raised and the issues with its record keeping discovered,” Judge Obradovic said. A spokesperson from UNSW said the university “deeply regrets” the failures in record-keeping while apologising to the staff affected. They said since the issues were identified, UNSW has made significant changes “to strengthen payroll and record-keeping governance, clarify pay codes, improve training for managers and administrators, and upgrade systems to support accurate time reporting”.