A popular Sydney bakery boss has been savaged by a judge after a teenage worker with an intellectual disability was exploited to bankroll her employer’s lifestyle – including an overseas family holiday.
Nhu Anh Vu, the owner of the Village Bakery in Sydney’s northern beaches, was branded ‘manipulative’, ‘calculated’ and ‘exploitative’ after a young employee was forced to hand over more than $18,000 of her own money to cover business expenses and personal travel.
Tayla Johnson, who has a mild intellectual disability and an IQ of 64, began working at the bakery when she was just 16 years old.
The Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia heard Ms Johnson was left unpaid for almost two years, despite regularly working shifts as a casual retail assistant between June 2021 and April 2023.
Instead of being paid wages, the vulnerable teenager was ordered to pay the bakery’s rent, meat bills and supply costs – racking up expenses totalling $18,080.60.
Ms Johnson was also forced to fund her boss’s overseas holiday, which included other family members.
In a blistering judgment handed down on December 22, Judge Peter Papadopoulos condemned Anh Vu’s conduct, as a gross abuse of power.
‘That offending was deliberate and calculated, and occurred in circumstances amounting to an abuse of power, having regard to the applicant’s youth and intellectual disability,’ he said.
‘To characterise the conduct relevant to the contraventions in this matter as being blameworthy or deplorable is, frankly, an understatement.’
Ms Johnson (not pictured) was unpaid for almost two years while working at the Village Bakery
The Village Bakery, which proudly describes itself as a family business, is popular in the ‘Heights’ community
Judge Papadopoulos also found Vu had ‘actively evaded service, misrepresented her whereabouts, and refused to participate in the proceedings, thereby disregarding the Court’s authority.’
The court was told Vu had also developed a personal relationship with Ms Johnson and had invited her to live with her at her home above the bakery.
It is understood they lived together intermittently for a total of approximately eight months.
The Village Bakery, which proudly describes itself as a family business spanning three generations, is popular in the ‘Heights’ community for its pies, pastries, and bánh mì.
In several online reviews, the bakery is lauded for its ‘family-friendly’ nature and ‘personal and professional service.’
Ms Johnson told the court the bakery had failed to pay her wages and superannuation for nearly two years, provide any payslips, or keep any employee records.
She was once paid just $1,233 for 123 hours of work, which works out to around $10 an hour – well below the minimum pay rate under the relevant award.
She then received no payment between 9 August 2021 and 24 April 2023.
The Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia heard Ms Johnson was ordered to foot the bill for the bakery’s business expenses and a holiday for her boss
The bakery has now been ordered to pay more than $345,000 in compensation for its treatment of Ms Johnson.
This includes nearly $49,000 in outstanding wages, more than $5,000 for the non-payment of superannuation, and a whopping $235,000 in penalties for serious contraventions of the Fair Work Act, plus compensation.
Vu was also ordered to repay Ms Johnson more than $18,000 in personal funds.
The court ordered that the costs must be paid by late January.
The Daily Mail has contacted Vu and the Village Bakery for comment.
