Fair Work Ombudsman
At a glance
- Aruma Services Limited
- $6,500,000
- 1004
What happened
Aruma Services Limited, a not-for-profit disability support provider operating across NSW, Queensland, Victoria and the ACT, signed an Enforceable Undertaking with the Fair Work Ombudsman after back-paying Victorian staff more than $6.5 million, including interest and superannuation. Aruma self-reported in June 2021. Its enterprise agreement had been interpreted incorrectly, and its payroll system could not always apply overtime rates. 1,004 employees were underpaid between July 2017 and April 2021. Most underpayments involved Aruma failing to provide part-time employees with their minimum agreed hours (or pay for them), and failing to apply overtime rates where an employee worked more than six consecutive days of ordinary duty without a 24-hour break.
What was decided
Aruma entered an EU with the FWO and back-paid more than $6.5 million across Victorian operations. The figure is remediation, not a civil penalty. Aruma agreed to a compliance program under the EU.
What it means for employers
Part-time minimum agreed hours clauses mean you must pay those hours even if you did not roster them. Overtime after six consecutive days without a 24-hour break is an often-missed EA clause. Payroll systems must be able to apply these rules automatically, not rely on manual overrides.
What it means for employees
Aruma part-time disability support staff in Victoria between 2017 and 2021 may be owed back-pay for minimum agreed hours not rostered and for overtime on a seventh consecutive day. Aruma is contacting affected staff through its remediation program.
Want this applied to your situation?
Reading the decision is free. FairWork Mate goes further — it reads the full case library and applies precedents like this one to your specific facts, citing the cases as it reasons. General information, not a guaranteed outcome or legal advice.
Send your details to Liquid Employment Lawyers
Liquid Employment Lawyers is a paid legal service and our referral partner, not free Fair Work advice. FairWork Mate may receive a referral fee from Liquid Legal. Tell them what has happened and a member of their team will call you back. For free general guidance, use our tools or call the Fair Work Ombudsman on 13 13 94.
Prefer to read first? About Liquid Employment Lawyers · Not sure if you need a lawyer? Read the legal help guides
Want more cases like this?
FairWork Mate tracks Fair Work Ombudsman, Fair Work Commission and Federal Court decisions across Australia. The AI advisor answers plain-English questions grounded on the full corpus — awards cited, industry, penalty amounts and affected employee counts — with a citation to the underlying decision on every answer.
FairWork Mate AI
This is one decision. Pro reads all of them.
Free case pages cite the top 250 decisions. Pro opens the full Fair Work Commission and Federal Court library, cross-references your own situation against it, and cites the decision behind every answer — plus document upload, so it can read your letter or contract line by line. 150 questions a month, cancel anytime.
Renews monthly at A$29.99 until you cancel. By continuing you agree to our Terms.
Get notified on new Fair Work cases
Free email alerts when we publish new underpayment decisions, penalty orders, and workplace law updates.