Retail in Asia

In People

Workers at 7-Eleven Australia get almost USD7.7m in compensation

Workers at 7-Eleven Australia have received almost AUD10 million (USD7.7m) in compensation after the franchise giant set up an “independent” panel following revelations of systemic wage fraud across the franchise network.

The panel, headed by former ACCC chairman professor Allan Fels, has received almost 3000 claims from past and present exploited foreign students on visas which is equivalent to an average payout of AUD33,284.

Some workers were paid as little as AUD10 an hour, some were threatened with deportation if they spoke up, some were beaten and some were forced to pay tens of thousands of dollars for visas.