Talent & Tech Asia Summit 2024
human resources online

Bizarre HR: Teen sacked for taking $12, wins $13,000

A teenage bar worker who was fired for taking $12 of unclaimed slot machine money was awarded $13,000 compensation for being unfairly dismissed.

The amount was awarded by the Employment Relations Authority after it found the teen, Jamie Hammond, had been trained by her manager to take any unclaimed winnings, the New Zealand Herald reported.

The authority said her former manager at the Grosvenor Hotel had potentially implicated Hammond in an unlawful act.

Authority member David Appleton also found Hammond believed she was doing the right thing by taking the leftover $12 as a tip, as it was claimed the manager once split $320 in leftover money with herself and her bar staff.

The manager was not present to address the evidence about her conduct at the hearing.

Legally, leftover money from gambling machines is to be put into the Pub’s Charity Trust bank account, however Hammond has been taught to split unclaimed gaming money as an end-of-shift bonus.

So when $24 was left over last December, she decided to split it between herself and a colleague, who declined to take the $12 claiming she was “uncomfortable”.

Hammond took her half and was subsequently dismissed from her bar job.

“She followed what she believed to be the correct practice in such a case,” Appleton said.

Appleton ordered Hammond be paid $6,217 in lost wages and $7,500 compensation for humiliation she suffered.

Follow us on Telegram and on Instagram @humanresourcesonline for all the latest HR and manpower news from around the region!

Related topics

Related articles

Free newsletter

Get the daily lowdown on Asia's top Human Resources stories.

We break down the big and messy topics of the day so you're updated on the most important developments in Asia's Human Resources development – for free.

subscribe now open in new window