Legislation amending the Criminal Code to make wage theft a crime has been introduced to Queensland parliament. At the time of making this post it has not yet passed.
Interestingly – and inconsistently with Victorian wage theft legislation – there is no mention of directors’ liability for wage theft as a result of which there is at least some question as to whether company officers would have criminal responsibility for the theft by their company.
Regardless, the laws are very strict and may make criminal minor delays in payment and potentially honest mistakes or oversights. While the section does require that the the underpayment is fraudulent, there will be instances where an omission might seem intentional (and fraudulent) when it was perfectly benign.
