Supermarket giant Woolworths has begun requiring some staff to clock out and in around break times, angering some workers on social media who called the practice “micromanaging”.

But an employment lawyer said there’s a larger rationale behind the move as the company looks to draw a line under its sordid wage theft scandals and ensure workers are being paid properly.

Woolworths told workers at some of its South Australian stores earlier this month that they need to record break times, according to a notice that was later published on social media platform Reddit.

“This new clocking practice is critical to ensure all team members are taking their entitled meal breaks for their health, wellbeing & safety,” Woolworths told workers in its notice.

“It also enables us to be able to provide increased pay confidence, and will allow for greater accuracy.”

One team member called it “micromanaging BS”, while another said it was “workplace abuse”.

Others pointed out that Woolworths has required warehouse workers to do this for decades.

Woolworths’ notice to customers. Source: Reddit

Victoria-Jane Otavski, a partner at Black Bay Lawyers, said requiring workers to clock on and off for breaks is not just legal, but has even been made compulsory for certain awards by the umpire.

Otavski said that the Fair Work Commission (FWC) made the decision for staff on annualised salary agreements to help ensure accurate records were being kept of the hours that people work.

“It is a practice that can help ensure that employers are paying their staff correctly and stamp out instances of wage theft,” Otavski said.

“It can also help identify instances where staff are being denied opportunities to take routine rest and meal breaks that they are entitled to.”

Jewell Hancock principal Trent Hancock explained that workers who refuse to clock in or out at break time could be refusing to comply with a lawful direction.

But he said employees can also use the strict record keeping to ensure they’re also getting what they are entitled to.

“While some employees may be upset by the new practice, it seems to me an entirely reasonable request that promotes accountability and transparency,” Hancock said.

“Employees will simply need to be prepared to refuse directions to perform work during meal breaks.

“This would ordinarily constitute the exercise of a workplace right, for which any resulting adverse action is prohibited.”

Woolworths’ wage theft history

For Woolworths in particular the need to pay workers properly hits close to home given it has suffered massive wage theft scandals since 2019, with hundreds of millions in underpayments exposed.

In some cases, those underpayments were related to salaried workers, with the supermarket giant still owing tens of millions to current and former staff, according to its latest update.

There were $238 million in outstanding payroll remediation obligations as at December 31, 2023, about $64 million of which relates to salaried workers.

Woolworths is also facing litigation brought by Victoria’s wage inspector over underpayments.

Employers on alert

More broadly, Hancock said businesses are cleaning up their acts lately around payroll record keeping as adverse claims pile up.

“There have been a series of claims recently against employers in the retail and fast food industry involving allegations that employees have not been receiving their mandated meal breaks,” he said.

“Implementing a clock-in and clock-out system would no doubt assist Woolworths in avoiding a similar claim.”

Otavski said businesses are looking to safeguard themselves against wrongdoing and that the punch-on and punch-off requirement (also known as bundying) can help their defence.

“Employers are increasingly taking such measures to avoid falling foul of workplace laws and underpayment claims, which can lead to prosecutions by the Fair Work Ombudsman and have disastrous reputational consequences,” Otavski said.

“But it might not create a full proof means given it’s not unheard of that individuals can routinely forget to clock on and off at times, leading to erroneous records in any event.”

– TND