Amandeep was forced to sell her family home after working unpaid for ten weeks... her bosses have been ordered to pay her almost $50,000
An accountant who was left broke and forced to sell her family home after going unpaid for more than ten weeks has won nearly $50,000 in compensation after the workplace tribunal found she had no choice but to quit.Amandeep Buaal, who worked for wholesaler The Fruit Hustle for nine years, said missing months of wages made it impossible to keep up with mortgage repayments, ultimately triggering the sale of her family home and a move to regional Victoria.She resigned in November 2025, giving four weeks’ notice after she stopped being paid in late September.She told the Fair Work Commission she repeatedly raised concerns with company directors Lon Nguyen and his wife, Kayce Nguyen, only to be told the struggling business would pay her soon.Ms Buaal also feared the company would be placed into administration to avoid paying her entitlements before relaunching under a new name. Those fears were realised, with ASIC records showing a new company, Your Food Connect Pty Ltd, was registered in February 2026 at a different Epping address, with Ms Nguyen listed as director.Further checks revealed The Fruit Hustle had already entered external administration in January 2026.Ms Buaal said when she resigned, Mr Nguyen threatened that she would not receive any of her outstanding wages, leaving her with no option but to walk away. Amandeep Buaal (pictured) worked for The Fruit Hustle for nine years and told the FWC missing months of wages made it impossible to keep up with mortgage repayments Ms Buaal repeatedly raised concerns with company directors Lon Nguyen and his wife Kayce Nguyen (pictured) only to be told the struggling business would pay her soonShe had worked across related family businesses since 2016 before transferring to The Fruit Hustle in 2022, with her entitlements carried over.Her employment with Forevergreen Fresh ended when Mr Nguyen's father Loi declared bankruptcy.Text messages tendered to the Commission show she pleaded weekly to be paid, but her calls and messages went unanswered. She received no wages between September and December 2025, and said payments had been repeatedly delayed since January 2025. Ms Buaal told the Commission Mr Nguyen deliberately withheld her pay in the hope she would quit after seeing another accountant successfully bring an unfair dismissal claim against his father Loi when he declared bankruptcy. She has since struggled to find work, applying for a range of accounting and administrative roles while dealing with the upheaval of relocating her family and moving her children to new schools.Commissioner Yilmaz found her resignation was effectively forced by the company's conduct and noted the Nguyens failed to respond to repeated letters, phone calls and emails to take part in the case.'Had (Mr Nguyen) continued to pay wages, a resignation was unnecessary,' she said. When Ms Buaal said she resigned, Lon Nguyen (pictured) warned she would not receive any of her outstanding wages leaving her with no option but to walk away'Rather, the resignation… was entirely justified due to the serious breach of contractual obligations.'Ms Buaal is owed more than $55,000 in wages and entitlements, with Commissioner Yilmaz recommending she take the matter to the Fair Work Ombudsman and the ATO to pursue her outstanding entitlements. 'I am not confident (Mr Nguyen) will comply with this order,' Commissioner Yilmaz said.She was awarded the maximum 26 weeks' compensation - a total of $48,698 before tax.
