Grill'd

Grill'd is an Australian food chain specialising in healthy burgers. It was founded by Simon Crowe in 2004 in Hawthorn, Melbourne, and as of 2016 has 125 locations.[1][2]

Grill'd
TypePrivate with subsidiary and franchise locations
IndustryRestaurant
Founded2 March 2004 (2004-03-02)
HeadquartersMelbourne,
Victoria
,
Australia
Number of locations
136
Products
OwnerSimon Crowe
Websitegrilld.com.au

Through the Local Matters program, each Grill'd restaurant donates $500 monthly to three local community groups split $300 / $100 / $100, with customers voting for their preferred community group by placing a token into a jar.[3]

Controversies

In June 2015 it came to public attention that the Toowong franchise had selected anti-abortion group Cherish Life to receive funds from the Local Matters program. Founder Simon Crowe apologised for the alleged mistake, stating that Grill'd is pro-choice.[4]

The restaurant chain encountered controversy in July 2015 when allegations arose that Kahlani Pyrah, a former employee of the Camberwell franchise, had been removed from her position after beginning a wage case with the Fair Work Commission to overturn a contract which set pay below the minimum award rate. Grill'd officially denied the allegations, claiming that bullying of managers was the reason for the dismissal.[5] Pyrah launched a Federal Court case in a bid to get her job back.[6] An interim Federal Court ruling ordered Grill'd to reinstate her, allowing the wage case hearing to go ahead.[7] At the hearing, a ruling by the Fair Work Commission forced Grill'd to raise the wages of employees at its Camberwell franchise to be in line the award rate. Jess Walsh of the hospitality union United Voice said that the ruling was an "enormous win" for Pyrah and Grill'd employees.[8] A planned unfair dismissal hearing at the Federal Court was called off after Pyrah and Grill'd reached an out-of-court settlement.[9]

In May 2016, a staff member at the Point Cook franchise allegedly refused a female customer a two-for-one offer intended to encourage men to bring a friend to the restaurant as part of the company's support for men's mental health. A spokeswoman from the Movember Foundation, the sponsor of the promotion, apologised over the team member's misunderstanding.[10]

In 2019 serious allegations were made against Grill’d by The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age concerning misuse of government subsidies to reduce staffing expenses.[11][12][13] The coverage also include allegations of "serious" food safety concerns at 1-in-10 company-owned Grill’d restaurants.[11] Allegations also included franchises being mistreated by the company and founder Simon Crowe falsifying signatures of his business partner on two liquor licenses.

See also

References
  1. Milman, Oliver (1 October 2010). "Grill'd to perfection". startup smart. Archived from the original on 5 October 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2015.
  2. Walters, Kath (21 August 2013). "Grill'd burger chain says it's time to find a CEO". BRW. Archived from the original on 5 November 2015. Retrieved 14 April 2015.
  3. "Grill'd Local Matters". Retrieved 14 April 2015.
  4. Agius, Kym. "Grill'd burger chain apologises for Brisbane store's support of anti-abortion group Cherish Life". ABC News. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
  5. "Burger chain Grill'd to change pay rates after backlash over worker's sacking". The Guardian. AAP. 22 July 2015. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
  6. Toscano, Nick (20 July 2015). "Sacked Grill'd worker takes claims to court". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 22 August 2015. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  7. Toscano, Nick (27 July 2015). "Sacked Grill'd employee Kahlani Pyrah reinstated, paving way for wage case". The Age. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 18 December 2015. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  8. Toscano, Nick (30 July 2015). "Ruling forces Grill'd store to increase wages". The Age. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 2 August 2015. Retrieved 31 July 2015.
  9. Toscano, Nick (27 August 2015). "Sacked Grill'd worker Kahlani Pyrah receives payout from burger company". The Age. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 22 October 2015. Retrieved 27 August 2015.
  10. "Woman denied free Grill'd burger as part of Movember Foundation campaign because she's female". News.com.au. News Corp Australia. 10 May 2016. Archived from the original on 11 May 2016.
  11. Hennessy, James (9 December 2019). "Here are the 5 key learnings from the juicy investigation into popular burger chain Grill'd". Business Insider Australia. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  12. McGinn, Christine (7 December 2019). "Grill'd burgers employee says he was subjected to rock-bottom wages and dodgy traineeship". 7NEWS.com.au. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  13. Ferguson, Adele (7 December 2019). "Burger chain Grill'd accused of keeping workers in low-paid roles". sky news .com.au. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
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