In a submission to the Queensland Parliament committee inquiry, National Retail Association chief executive officer Dominique Lamb said the inherent complexity in the system of modern awards was a substantial driver of the practice and that application of the wrong award was “alarmingly common”.

“In [our] view, deliberate non-compliance occurs out of a desire to increase profitability. Since labour costs are the most significant cost of doing business for a retail operator, it naturally makes sense to try and decrease this cost,” the NRA submission stated.

“However, the threat of significant penalties and a compliance system geared towards employee self-representation generally act as a suitable deterrent against deliberate non-compliance.”

The NRA submission cited the case of the Maurice Blackburn law firm, where an ambiguous overtime clause in an enterprise agreement resulted in the firm owing $1 million in back payments.

“This begs the question — if a specialist law firm can get it wrong, what hope is there for a small business without access to that level of expertise?” it stated.

The NRA concluded that wage non-compliance would never be eradicated because “there will always be a business operator with insufficient understanding, or insufficient scruples, for this to occur”.

So far, the inquiry has received 48 public submissions and two confidential submissions, and is set to hold its first public hearing on Thursday, August 16.

It has revealed some startling findings, such as the Office of Industrial Relations employing just 15 inspectors to handle 13,000 inquiries a year to its Wageline number, and heard claims by the NRA that the Fair Work Ombudsman has “less than one” enforcement officer for every 3000 businesses.

The inquiry has also highlighted that a previous investigation undertaken by the Fair Work Ombudsman found 60 per cent of franchisees in Brisbane were not compliant with the Fair Work Act.

Among the public submissions were stories of Queenslanders receiving no pay, underpayment or late payment of wages and superannuation, including:

Alan Sparks, the CEO of not-for-profit group training organisation (GTO) East Coast Apprenticeships, said in his submission there was sufficient evidence to suggest a “hidden iceberg of theft”.

“... It is often reported by … young people to a GTO when the GTO is called upon to offer help securing a new apprentice start.

“Such wage theft is often identified when the young person discovers they have never been registered into a formal apprenticeship by an employer who has terminated their ‘employment’,” Mr Sparks wrote.

“Some of these victims only become aware of the abuse and theft when they engage with a GTO in their efforts to secure and/or complete an apprenticeship.

“In these instances, unscrupulous employers pay apprentice rates of pay without a legitimate registration of the apprenticeship … The extent of this theft of wages for apprentices has never been determined as young people are often reluctant to report such matters even when they have left that employment.”

The Queensland Tourism Industry Council pointed to industries such as horticulture and hospitality as being “highly susceptible” to wage theft.

“When examining the reporting of wage theft in the media, often the hospitality industry is seen as one of the main perpetrators,” it stated in its submission.

“Within the past five years, high-profile chefs such as George Calombaris, Shannon Bennett and Darren Purchese have all been accused of varying levels of wage theft, thereby solidifying a negative perception about the hospitality industry.”

A corporate and insolvency law expert, University of Queensland’s Associate Professor David Morrison, pointed to exploitative employment practices, workforce casualisation and “phoenix” companies as contributing to “a complex problem”.

Phoenixing involves creating a new company to continue the business of an existing company that is deliberately liquidated to avoid paying taxes, creditors and staff entitlements.

“So-called ‘work experience’ appears to be an opportunity for free labour … this unpaid work may lead to a paid position and, in the worst instances, no guarantee is given, allowing an unscrupulous employer to engage a series of workers over time without making wage payments,” Professor Morrison argued in his submission.

He claimed that “phoenix” companies were estimated to cost the Australian economy $5 billion a year.

“The ... widespread occurrence of wage theft … and particularly phoenixing by some small businesses, is firmly entrenched as part of “usual” business practice within Australia.

“There is little doubt that phoenix company and associated activity is occurring … at great cost to all, including wage earners,” he said.

Professor Morrison also told the inquiry that phoenixing is “rife” in the construction industry and payment to various creditors can be avoided through the use of a company structure.

“... Once the business can no longer survive, it is simply abandoned, with creditors including employees left stranded, and the business then recommences in much the same form and often using an almost identical business name,” he said.

Members of the public can contribute to the inquiry by participating in an online survey until 4pm on September 30, 2018.

The Education, Employment and Small Business parliamentary committee will report its findings by November 16, 2018.