A man has been forced to pay £67,000 after attempting to steal his employee’s government-funded parental leave pay.
SBS News reports that Kulpreet Singh, from Marrangaroo in Australia, was the Manager of a United Petroleum roadhouse (service station).
He employed a 29-year-old woman, who gave birth to a child in April 2015. However, when the government deposited $11,538 (£6,506) to the company for it to then be transferred to her, Singh faked documentation which purported to show he had paid the amount in full to the woman’s husband and pocketed the cash.
He did eventually pay his employee the money she was entitled to, but five months after it had been due. The judge in the case, Nick Nicholls, said Singh’s reasons for failing to make the payment were “absurd”.
“Mr Singh was, to be blunt, well and truly caught out by the FWO, perpetrating a deliberate falsehood in relation to false payment record.”
Singh admitted to contravening the Paid Parental Leave Act, as well as misleading bookkeeping, and has been fined $19,720 (£11,112). His company Noorpreet Pty Ltd will need to pay a further $100,000 (£56,353).
Here in the UK, Peninsula’s Head of Advisory and Equality Expert Kate Palmer suggests that employers should support staff with caring and parental responsibilities where they can. “Where finances allow, offering staff increased rates of family pay over and above statutory payments, e.g. enhanced maternity pay, will provide workplace support to those with families and increase the likelihood of the employee staying with the business,” Palmer explains.
“Implementing a clear and straightforward shared parental leave policy, and having a positive attitude towards this, will also improve gender equality as it provides support for male employees. In turn, this will empower female employees.”
