Auckland labour hire director ordered to pay $203,000 for worker breaches

Huy Quang Tran, the sole director of High-End Renov Group Limited (HERG), has been held personally liable for multiple employment breaches affecting three Vietnamese migrant workers. The Employment Relations Authority (ERA) ordered Tran to pay a total of $203,469.89. This amount includes $132,291.14 in wage arrears, holiday pay, and unlawful employment premiums for the three former employees, plus $71,178.75 in penalties.

The breaches involved failing to pay minimum wage and holiday entitlements, inadequate record keeping, and seeking unlawful premiums. Two workers each paid $30,000 in Vietnam to secure jobs under the Accredited Employer Work Visa scheme before arriving in New Zealand. While Tran claimed these were personal loan repayments, the ERA rejected this explanation and ruled the $60,000 was an illegal fee to obtain employment.

ERA member Robert Davies ordered that each of the three workers receive $6,000 of the penalty amount, with the remaining $53,178.75 paid to the Crown. Davies stated, "The premiums are especially serious because the sums were substantial and the payments were connected to the prospect of employment in New Zealand".

HERG supplied painters and plasterers to construction sites in Auckland and Christchurch before entering liquidation in March 2025. The company has since been removed from the Companies Register. Acting Head of the Labour Inspectorate Jeanie Borsboom said the ruling sends a clear message that directors can be held personally accountable for breaching employment standards.

Where reports differ

• One report describes the penalty amount for the Crown as approximately $53,000, while others provide the specific figure of $53,178.75

Compiled from reports by 1News, RNZ, NZ Herald and The Press.