Original article by Andrew White, Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 17 & 21 : 20-Nov-19

More than $500m worth of wage underpayments have been disclosed to date; however, modelling by accounting firm PwC suggests that in total, Australian workers may be underpaid by up to $1.35bn a year. The modelling, which is based on data from the Fair Work Ombudsman, shows that up to 13 per cent of all workers may be underpaid, with construction workers found to be most at risk of being underpaid. The federal government is considering the introduction of criminal penalties for wage theft, as well as an increase in civil penalties.

CORPORATES
PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS AUSTRALIA (INTERNATIONAL) PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, 7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, SUPER RETAIL GROUP LIMITED – ASX SUL, MICHAEL HILL INTERNATIONAL LIMITED – ASX MHJ, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT