Attorney-General Christian Porter has sent a warning to corporate Australia after Coles became the latest major company embroiled in an underpayment scandal.
The supermarket giant is expecting a $20 million hit after underpaying managers at its supermarkets and liquor division during the past six years.
The Coles scandal erupted on the same day Mr Porter, who is also industrial relations minister, released a discussion paper looking at options to tackle worker underpayments.
The paper raises the prospect of adverse publicity orders, which could require an employer to display a notice admitting to underpaying workers.
Company directors could be disqualified from holding office and businesses that fail to prevent wage theft banned from hiring migrant workers.
"Corporate Australia surely now has got the message that they need to get their house in order," Mr Porter told reporters in Melbourne
"If they haven't got that message then they're going to be absolutely and utterly compelled to in the future by the most vigorous, robust and complete set of laws around wage underpayment that Australia's ever seen."
Mr Porter said penalties for companies like Coles and Woolworths would be inescapable under the new regime.
The Australian Council of Trade Unions says the government's attack on unions is to blame for wage theft, as officials are less able to inspect pay records and conduct compliance checks.
Labor leader Anthony Albanese said wage theft was a huge issue that was all too prevalent across Australia.
"This government attacks unions day-in, day-out," he told reporters in Brisbane.
"They prepared to defend the sort of behaviour that we have seen become all too prevalent. They have very little to say about this exploitation, which is what it is."
The Morrison government is also due to introduce legislation in coming weeks to criminalise the most serious forms of worker exploitation with significant jail terms and fines.
Mr Porter said the vast majority of underpayments were not deliberate.
"But that doesn't make it any less terrible, particularly for the people who are being underpaid," he said.
He said the issue was incredibly serious and bordered on negligence in the case of big companies that should be capable of following workplace law.
Mr Porter said the coalition had already increased some civil penalties by a factor of 10.
The measures stem from the Migrant Worker Taskforce, which came after shocking revelations of underpayment at 7-Eleven shops.
The discussion paper also asks whether the small claims process available through courts could be streamlined to encourage greater participation at reduced costs.
A formal role for the Fair Work Commission to help mediate disputes between employers and employees is under consideration, as a way of delivering faster and cheaper outcomes.
Wage scandals have engulfed the hospitality and retail sectors in recent years, with high-profile cases including celebrity chef George Calombaris and Woolworths making headlines.
Mr Porter has also released a discussion paper looking at improving the building code.
Australian Associated Press
