Muffin Break’s Victoria store in Southland will face 360 criminal charges in the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria on June 16 over alleged breaches of Victoria’s child employment laws.
The state’s child employment watchdog, Wage Inspectorate Victoria, alleges that between March and October 2022, Rianshi, trading as Muffin Break, violated the Child Employment Act of 2003.
The Act was breached by employing three children under the age of 15 without a permit on 111 occasions and a failure to ensure the children were supervised by someone with a Working with Children Clearance.
The watchdog alleges the Victorian store also failed to provide a rest break of at least 30 minutes after every three hours of work and employed children for longer than three hours per day during a school term and longer than six hours during school holidays.
The maximum penalty for each of the above offences equates to $18,174 for offences related to the 2021-22 financial year and $18,429 for offences from the 2022-23 financial year.
Victoria’s child labour laws
Victoria’s child employment laws require employers of children under 15 to obtain a permit from the Wage Inspectorate before any work takes place to go over matters such as safety, hours of work, rest breaks and supervision.
However, starting from July 1, 2023, a child employment licensing system will replace the existing permit system allowing employers to employ multiple children under one licence.
Workers under 15 must be supervised by someone who holds a valid employee Victorian Working with Children Clearance.
Muffin Break acknowledges Australia’s child labour laws in each state via an “information for parents” page on its national website, which states that in Victoria, adolescents cannot start work until they are over 15 years of age.
Persons under 16 cannot work during school hours, may not work more than three hours on a school day, and must finish work by 9:00 pm.
Children must receive a 30-minute rest break after every three hours of work.
As Muffin Break stores have different store layouts and menus, they are covered under either the Fast Food Award or the Restaurant Industry Award.
Child labour in Australia
In the world’s poorest countries, more than one in five children are typically engaged in child labour.
In Australia, however, the child employment rate remains significantly lower due to the red tape surrounding child safety and work standards and minimum-age requirements.
The Muffin Break breach is the eighth child employment prosecution the Wage Inspectorate has commenced in the last 18 months.
Prosecutions made by the Wage Inspectorate are the most serious compliance tool and legal action is decided in line with the Compliance Enforcement Policy.