Qld pharmacists underpaid
March 6, 2012
AROUND $194,905 in
backpayments is on its way to more
than 1,300 Queensland pharmacy
workers following the results of an
audit by the Fair Work
Ombudsman.
The audit, which kicked off in May
last year, focused on 575
Queensland pharmacy employers’
compliance with Pharmacy Industry
Award 2010 regulations, paying
particular attention to pay rates,
minimum working hours, meal
break entitlements, pay slips and
record keeping.
According to the report’s findings
320 out of the 575 employers were
fully compliant with the regulations,
however 255 pharmacy employers
were in breach.
Of those that were noncompliant,
the Ombudsman
identified a total of 298 separate
contraventions, 66% of which
pertained to underpayments; 25%
to pay slip, time and wage issues;
and 7% to meal break entitlements.
The amounts of pay owing, which
have now been paid to employees,
equated to an average of $146 per
employee or $339 per audit.
MEANWHILE, APESMA has
responded to the audit’s findings
saying “Australia’s hardworking
professional pharmacists do not
deserve to be ripped off by
pharmacy owners”.
APESMA also said that it was
going to meet with the Fair Work
Ombudsman to discuss
investigating pharmacies in every
state and territory, adding that the
Ombudsman was concerned
that pharmacy owners were often
not aware of their workplace
obligations and did not seek further
advice or assistance.
The Pharmacy Guild of Australia
has also responded to the scandal
saying pharmacy employers must
comply with the award, and that
any non-compliance must be
addressed quickly when and if
identified.
To assist this process , the
Pharmacy Guild, with support from
Fair Work Ombudsman, has made
available online at
http://www.guild.org.au/pia all
the information necessary to
comply with the PIA free to all
community pharmacies (including
non-members) and their employees.
“Like many small businesses, it
was expected that community
pharmacies might find
transitioning to a new award
complicated and potentially
confusing, and that it would take
some time for this process to be
managed,” the Guild said.
“Adding to the difficulty for
Queensland pharmacies during
this audit period were the flooding
and cyclone natural disasters that
struck many parts of the State in
the period leading up to the new
pay rates.
“In light of these issues and the fact
that the contraventions identified
appeared to be unintentional or
technical errors that were resolved
quickly and voluntarily, the Guild is
confident that such issues can be
eliminated with ongoing
education,” the Guild added.
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