Unpaid staff angry at Poolrite’s sounds of silence

A failure to pay the last wage packet and a lack of communication from Poolrite management has left ex-staff fuming.

Ex-Poolrite staff are angry they did not receive their last pay despite specific assurances from senior Poolrite management. In addition to being terminated, some staff are angry at the way it was carried out, with their phones and email addresses cut-off, and no communication about their situation forthcoming from Poolrite.

Poolrite had in recent months downsized from a staff of 170 to 60, due to a lack of working capital which had led to a reduced scale of production.

SV Partners were appointed voluntary administrators on October 11 but were unable to recommence operations of the company and terminated most of the remaining 60 staff. The staff will have their entitlements paid by the government-funded General Employee Entitlement and Redundancy Scheme (GEERS) if Poolrite goes into liquidation. GEERS does not cover superannuation.

However, if a proposal for a deed of company arrangement is accepted at the upcoming creditors meeting, administrator David Stimpson says that proposal must include an arrangement for the employees’ entitlements to be paid in full.

“The staff will be paid one way or the other: it’s just a matter of how,” he says.

Regarding the last pay, Anne Meagher, Director of SV Partners, says that although a pay run had been done, the last wages weren’t paid because there weren’t sufficient funds in the bank account at the time of the appointment.

Phone diversions

One ex-Poolrite employee says that on Wednesday they thought the news was all very positive.

“Then on Thursday we found all our phones were diverted. Our customers, builders and shops tried to ring but the calls went to the head office. We couldn’t even ring each other because our mobiles were Poolrite mobiles.

“We still received no communication from Poolrite or Ross Palmer. We were told we’ll get an update, but nothing came. We were told to take our car phones and laptops to Grays Online, but we heard nothing about the entitlements.”

Another ex-staff member says that senior management of Poolrite gave specific assurances they would be paid their last wages.

“Obviously we are all very upset by the lack of communication and misleading advice by our senior management.”

A third ex-Poolrite staff member says that a lot of people are angry because of the assurances given at the creditors meeting in September that the company could trade out of its troubles.

That ex-staff member is particularly concerned for some of the Brisbane staff who are left out of work and without their final pay packet.

“Some people can’t pay rent, they can’t buy food. And it’s hard for people to contact them to offer work because the mobile numbers don’t work and neither do the emails.

“And the entitlements can be a lot of money. Some people have been employed for many years, and there’s sick leave, holiday pay, termination pay – it comes to a lot. It could take GEERS months to pay us.”

Poolrite staff contact details

In order to assist ex-Poolrite staff maintain contact with the rest of the industry and seek employment, SPLASH! is happy to publish contact details including phone, email and even a short paragraph on work experience, if desired.

Please email chrismaher@intermedia.com.au with your details and they will be included on the online Job Board.