Director of dissolved firm ordered to pay $203,469 in worker breach penalties

Huy Quang Tran has been ordered to pay $203,469.89 to settle debts and penalties related to the employment of three Vietnamese migrant workers. The total sum was determined by the Employment Relations Authority after a review of his conduct as the sole director of High-End Renov Group Ltd. The company, based in Auckland, has since been removed from the Companies Register.

The Authority found that Tran personally committed breaches of employment law while operating the business. These violations included failing to pay the minimum wage and holiday entitlements. The company also maintained inadequate records and collected unlawful premiums from two of the three workers to secure their positions. High-End Renov Group Ltd supplied painters and plasterers to construction sites in Christchurch and Auckland before entering liquidation in March 2025.

Authority member Robert Davies broke down the financial order into two components. Tran must pay $132,291.14 in wage arrears, holiday pay, and unlawfully received premiums to the three former employees. Additionally, he owes $71,178.75 in penalties for his involvement in the breaches. Davies specified that each of the three workers would receive $6,000 from the penalty portion. The remaining $53,178.75 of the penalty amount is to be paid to the Crown.

The findings revealed that two of the migrant workers each paid $30,000 to obtain employment with Tran’s company. The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, or MBIE, noted that the workers were recruited from Vietnam, which is Tran’s country of birth. Although these payments were made in Vietnam before the workers arrived in New Zealand, MBIE stated that New Zealand employment law applied because the payments related to employment within the country.

This case follows a ruling from last month by the Employment Court. The court determined that overseas payments made to secure a job in New Zealand are illegal under the Wages Protection Act 1983. The MBIE explained that while the Act prohibits charging workers for a job, it was previously unclear if the law applied to payments made overseas. The October ruling confirmed that such payments are prohibited.

Jeanie Borsboom, acting head of the Labour Inspectorate, commented on the outcome of the case. She said the ruling sent a clear message that employers and company directors who breach employment standards can be held personally accountable. Borsboom added that all workers in New Zealand, including migrant workers, are entitled to minimum legal requirements. She stated that the Labour Inspectorate will continue to investigate allegations of worker exploitation and take enforcement action where employers profit at the expense of vulnerable workers.