Jailed restaurateur to pay more than $75,000 in wages

File photo / Dean Purcell

An Auckland restaurateur who was jailed for kidnapping two of his workers has been ordered to pay the men more than $75,000.

Rupinder Singh Chahil was last year jailed for two years on two counts of kidnapping and one of aggravated wounding. The Court of Appeal later quashed the aggravated wounding conviction and reduced his sentence to 18 months.

The case followed an incident on June 10, 2007, when Bashan and Akbar Singh quit their jobs at Chahil's Curry and Spice Restaurant in Whangaparaoa because they were unhappy with their wages.

Later that night, six to eight people, including Chahil, arrived unannounced at the Singhs' home, assaulted the men and then took them to separate addresses, holding them captive for a number of hours.

Both men lodged applications for unpaid wages and holiday pay from JR Hospitality, C G Hospitality, Bolliwood and J J Hospitality, the companies through which Chahil operated his Indian restaurants.

An Employment Relations Authority (ERA) decision released today said both parties claimed the other was lying as to how many hours Bashan and Akbar Singh worked, with the men claiming about 60 hours a week and the company claiming between 30 and 35 hours a week.

ERA member Robin Arthur said Chahil's evidence was generally less credible than the Singhs, given the time sheets and various employment agreements received in the investigation.

However, he said he did not accept the Singhs' evidence in its entirety, and that he considered it likely that they had exaggerated the hours they were required to be at the restaurant.

"I also consider it likely that they worked at least eight hours a day for each of the six days and a further four hours on a Sunday, resulting in at least a 52-hour week."

What was reported on the men's payslips varied from what was actually deposited into their account, and the usual weekly amount deposited into each account was $310, Mr Arthur said.

He ordered Chahil to pay Akbar Singh $41,831 and Bashan Singh $33,524 in wages and holiday pay, interest and penalties.

- NZPA