Bar staff line up for share of $19m lawsuit settlement

The hospitality company behind dozens of popular venues has agreed to pay millions of dollars to settle a lawsuit with former employees over alleged underpayments.

Sydney pub baron Justin Hemmes' company Merivale has agreed to pay $19.25 million to settle the lawsuit, without admitting any liability in relation to the claims.

The settlement was approved in the Federal Court on Friday, following five years of legal arguments and closed-door negotiations.

Merivale operates more than 90 Sydney venues including restaurants, bars and hotels.

Lead applicant Raymond Boulos claimed Merivale underpaid him and others employed by the company between December 2013 and December 2019.

The lawsuit argued the payment structure being applied by Merivale at the time was not valid under the Fair Work Act.

It claimed employees were paid for a 38-hour work week, while being required to work at least 50-hour a week without overtime payments

It is not known exactly how many staff were allegedly affected, but 2895 people registered to take part in the settlement, according to court documents.

Merivale continues to vigorously deny any underpayment occurred.

An administrator was appointed by the court to oversee the settlement being paid out, including more than $6.3 million which will go to the lawsuits' commercial backers, ICP Funding.

The former employees who are registered participants in the class action will receive a letter stating their estimated underpayment and eligible payout.