NSW: Young Workers Ripped Off

More stories are emerging of young workers ripped off by unscrupulous bosses in the wake of Lauren Moon's story of underpayment at the hands of a former employer.

The 17-year-old spoke to the Mercury this week after she was allegedly paid the equivalent of just $3.26 an hour for working 24.5 hours at Fancy Fruits in Thirroul Plaza.

A number of other young people, and even parents, have since contacted the Mercury to tell their own stories of unpaid work trials and alleged underpayment by various employers across the region.

Two of those people were prepared to speak on the record.

Mikaela (surname withheld) claims she was paid just $50 for up to 26 hours of work during a "training week".

Louise Chapman, whose daughter worked at Fancy Fruits earlier this year, said her daughter had been happily employed at the store for six weeks.

However, she held deep concerns her daughter was being underpaid.

Fancy Fruits was approached but declined to comment on the allegations.

Confusion exists over the legality of unpaid trials, which a Fair Work Ombudsman spokesman said were generally unlawful.

"However, an employer can ask an employee to demonstrate a skill, such as making a coffee, where this is directly relevant to a vacant position," he said.

Any period beyond what is reasonably required to demonstrate the skills required for the job must be paid at the appropriate minimum rate of pay.

"The trial period would be dependent on the nature and complexity of the work, but could range from an hour to one shift, but the person must be under direct supervision during that time, the spokesman said.

Employees must also be paid for probation periods, meetings, training and extra time spent opening or closing a business.

The spokesman said an investigation into allegations made by former Fancy Fruits employee Lauren Moon in a Mercury story this week was ongoing and as such it would inappropriate to comment further on the matter.

He urged anyone who feels they may have been underpaid or not received their fill entitlements to visit fairwork.gov.au or call the Fair Work Infoline on 13 13 94.