An Auckland restaurant and its former owner "ruthlessly exploited" vulnerable migrant employees, leaving them underpaid and forced to take out personal loans.
The Indian Taste and its former sole director, Krishna Khandelwal, must now pay almost $400,000 in arrears and penalties for its "persistent" and "deliberate" breaking of employment law.
The Employment Relations Authority found Khandelwal and the restaurant failed to pay workers the minimum wage and unlawfully deducted from their pay.
Workers were "regularly made" to work between 60 and 90 hours a week, but were paid for only about 30.
Some were also made to work for one to two weeks without pay when they first started.
Khandelwal and the restaurant failed to pay annual holiday and alternative holiday entitlements, made workers pay premiums to secure their employment, and failed to keep accurate wage and leave records.
Employment Relations Authority member Matthew Piper said employees had to borrow money at high interest and take personal loans, leaving them unable to support their families overseas.
A nine-month investigation was launched by the Labour Inspectorate after it received multiple complaints about "serious breaches" at The Indian Taste between March and December 2024.
Labour Inspectorate migrant exploitation manager, Sam Mills, described the exploitation as "egregious".
"Vulnerable workers – many with limited English and little understanding of New Zealand employment law – were ruthlessly exploited for the personal gain of the company and its owner," Mills said.
“These breaches were persistent, deliberate and designed to extract labour at an unlawful discount."
Piper said Khandelwal was in control of what happened at the restaurant, describing his behaviour as "deliberate and exploitative".
“As the shareholder of The Indian Taste, Mr Khandelwal received a financial benefit for his actions by underpaying workers and in doing so also failed to compete fairly with other businesses providing similar products and who complied with the law.”
He described the financial harm experienced by employees as "severe".
The authority ordered the restaurant to pay almost $200,000 in arrears to seven employees, while Khandelwal was penalised $177,300.
Mills called the penalty "significant", saying it will serve as a "clear deterrent to employers who seek to take advantage of vulnerable people trying to build a life in New Zealand".
"It is a clear message to employers and individual directors that this kind of business behaviour is unacceptable.”
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