The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) has secured a total of $16,155 in penalties and back-pay orders in court against a Sunshine Coast-based road transport company and its director.

The Federal Circuit and Family Court has imposed a $7500 penalty against Barco Traders, which operates a business transporting food waste from supermarkets.

The Court had also earlier imposed a $3990 penalty against the company’s sole director, Daniel John McGettigan.

The penalties were imposed in response to Barco Traders failing to comply with a Compliance Notice requiring it to back-pay a worker it employed on a full-time basis as a truck driver between late 2021 and June 2023. Mr McGettigan was involved in the contravention.

In addition to the penalties, the Court ordered Barco Traders back-pay the worker $4665 in outstanding entitlements.

FWO Anna Booth says employers that fail to act on Compliance Notices need to be aware they could face court-imposed penalties on top of having to pay workers.

“Where employers don’t comply, we will take appropriate action to protect employees. A court can order a business to pay penalties and to make payments,” she says.

The FWO investigated after receiving a request for assistance from the affected worker.

A Fair Work Inspector issued a Compliance Notice to Barco Traders in December 2023 after forming a belief that the company had failed to pay the worker’s accrued but untaken annual leave entitlements at the end of his employment, owed under the Fair Work Act’s National Employment Standards.