Restaurant Illegally Docks Employees’ Pay for Burning Waffles, Soggy Pork

A cafe in Australia takes pork and waffles very seriously. So much so that they’re willing to dock an employee’s pay by $100. I’m one for crispy bacon and soft waffles, but I wouldn’t go as far as charging that much for a simple mistake.

The Perth restaurant is looking at some hefty fines from the Fair Work Commission after deducting pay from an employee’s check against the law. The Los Angeles Times reports that staff members faced multiple fines depending on what mistake was made in the kitchen. A cook would be missing $112 dollars from her paycheck if her pork belly did not come out crispy enough. If a tomato slice was placed in a sandwich the wrong way, $30 would be deducted. There was also a $10 charge for not preparing parsley for the next day’s shift. Employees would even be deducted $100 each time they were late for a shift.

The restaurant faced complaints from 4 employees and paid $5,000 to each employee in compensation, in addition to $7,650 in fines. The U.S. Department of Labor states that employers are only allowed to deduct and employee’s pay in the event of a walkout, a shortage in the cash register and damages only if the deduction does not go under minimum wage.

Sheesh.