A Bay of Plenty horticulture labour hire company and its former director have been ordered to pay more than $400,000 in wage arrears and penalties after four migrant workers were underpaid and charged unlawful employment-related premiums.
The Employment Relations Authority (ERA) has ordered Indo Kiwi Horticulture Limited to pay $176,000 in penalties, while its former sole director and shareholder, Boota Singh Dhillon, has been ordered to pay a further $88,000.
The company has also been ordered to repay more than $152,000 in unpaid wages, holiday pay and unlawful premiums to four former migrant workers.
ERA member Jeremy Lynch ordered that each of the four complainants receive $33,000 from the penalties, with the remaining amount to be paid to the Crown.
“The complainants were all Indian nationals who had come to New Zealand in search of employment opportunities. There was an inherent power imbalance in the employer/employee relationship, which was amplified by the fact the complainants were relying on the support of their employer in respect of their immigration status," Lynch said.
“Throughout the course of their employment, the complainants were on employer specific work visas, to work only for Indo Kiwi. In the circumstances of this matter, this can only have increased the complainants’ vulnerability," Lynch added.
Indo Kiwi Horticulture supplied workers to kiwifruit orchards in the Bay of Plenty. Dhillon was the company’s sole director and shareholder when the breaches occurred. He sold the company in October 2024, and it is no longer operating.
The Labour Inspectorate began investigating the company after receiving a complaint in July 2024.
The investigation found that four Indian nationals employed on employer-specific work visas had been underpaid and denied minimum employment entitlements.
Three of the workers had also paid unlawful premiums totalling more than $65,000. Some of those payments were made to bank accounts linked to Dhillon’s family members in India.
Labour Inspectorate Migrant Exploitation Manager Natalie Gardiner said the case highlighted the vulnerability of migrant workers and the consequences for employers who attempted to profit from that vulnerability.
“New Zealand law is clear. Employers cannot demand or receive payments from workers in exchange for employment. Exploiting workers for financial gain is unacceptable.
“The penalties ordered against both Indo Kiwi Horticulture Limited and Boota Singh Dhillon, together with the substantial payments directed to the affected workers, send a strong message about the seriousness of migrant exploitation and the importance of compliance with employment standards,” Gardiner said.
Lynch said the company had gained an unfair advantage over competitors by withholding wages and holiday pay owed to the workers.