Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth vows to use criminal penalties to clamp down on wage theft

Newly-appointed Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth has vowed to use yet-to-be legislated criminal penalties against employers who deliberately underpay or rip off their workers.

LISTEN to my interview with Anna Booth here

Ms Booth - who began as fair work cop last month - says the risk of tough criminal sanctions including potential jail time would be a major deterent to dodgy bosses if proposed criminal wage theft laws are passed by federal parliament.

"Certainly once the law has passed and there is a criminal liability, as long as the criminal standard of proof has been met then the criminal penalties could flow as well as in the ultimate case of imprisonment.," Ms Booth told the ABC's AM program in an exclusive interview.

"I think the criminal penalties if they become law will be an extremely good, specific and general deterrent. And of course, we will enforce them. 

"It is important that the awareness is raised and there's no doubt that there will be a sharper focus on behavior in that that circumstance."

Ms Booth began her five year term as Ombudsman in September after extensive experience in workplace relations including eight years as Deputy President of the Fair Work Commission from 2012 to 2020.

Ms Booth began her career in the trade union movement in the late 1970s in the clothing industry, witnessing cases of work underpayment and exploitation - paving her path to become Fair Work Ombudsman.

"Back then I observed on almost a daily basis, women being confined to their sewing machines, getting urinary tract infections and getting repetition strain injuries from their work," Ms Booth said.

"There are certain cohorts of workers who are more vulnerable than others. Young people and migrant workers, particularly visa holders .. because they're often either unaware of their rights or afraid to speak up. 

"In the clothing industry, I had seen the experience of of workers being afraid to go to the toilet whilst they were working on sewing machines. So I've seen fear in the workplace. There are still large cohorts of workers who are afraid".

As the mother of a 29 year old daughter with an intellectual disability, Ms Booth is also hoping to eliminate discrimination and injustices for people with disabilities who she says should be welcomed and integretated into the workplace.

Ms Booth recently took to Linkedin to speak about the challenges of placing Clare in employment especially as opportunies faded during the COVID lockdowns.

"Some of the inquiries to our office come either from people with a disability or on or behalf on behalf of people with disability," Ms Booth said.

"I have recently been working very hard to place my own daughter in employment. The challenge is that the workplace itself has to be a great receiving environment for any neurodiverse person. 

"I would like to see more effort put in by not just employers, but the workplace community generally in being a welcoming environment for people with disability."

Ms Booth said in addition to protecting the rights of people with disabilities, her office was casting a net wide across agriculture, aged care, fast food, and universities.

Recently, the Ombudsman's office urged the Federal Court to seek a maximum penalty against the Commonwealth Bank in relation to alleged underpayments of $16 million.

Ms Booth said the maximum penalty stance was designed to send a message to major employers that worker underpayments would not be tolerated.

"It is important that proper penalties be paid in these circumstances so that we shine a light on the behavior and and get people to sit up and take notice," Ms Booth said.

In recent years, the Fair Work Ombudsman has targetted a range of organisations for underpayments including Woolworths, Coles, Qantas and the ABC which agreed to a $600,000 "contrition payment" and an enforcable undertaking to overhaul its timekeeping systems.

A Fair Work Ombudsman spokeman said the ABC's enforcable undertaking over the underpayment of around 1900 staff was "tracking towards finalisation".

"The ABC has been cooperative and it has now completed most obligations," the spokesman said.

In addition to the contrition payment, the spokesman said the ABC had backpaid more than $12 million, plus interest and superannuation.

The ABC recently introduced a new rostering and shift tracking system to ensure it complies with the law.