Dan Strachotta, the former CEO and now-owner of embattled Australian food chain Doughnut Time, has sent unpaid wages to one of the dozens of employees owed money.
BuzzFeed News understands Strachotta contacted Sydney-based employee Poppy Gordon and spoke at length with her earlier this week, telling her he would pay her owed wages in full – including supplying pay slips – because she was on a working holiday visa and would not qualify for payment through a Fair Entitlements Guarantee (FEG).
The FEG is financial assistance provided by the Australian government to people who have lost their job due to bankruptcy or the liquidation of their employer.
Gordon said she first heard from Strachotta on Wednesday evening and that a long conversation followed.
"He said he was only trying to do the right thing, and that we were going to be paid," she told BuzzFeed News. "So I told everyone that I had spoken to Dan and that he was defending himself, and that he would help anyone on working visas with payments. He said I could tell everyone that he would help them."
On Thursday evening the payment was confirmed and Gordon received all of the pay slips covering the four weeks wages she was owed.
However, BuzzFeed News has seen an exchange between Strachotta and another employee – also on a working visa – where the Doughnut Time owner rejects requests for payment.
In the text messages, Strachotta says he is waiting on former Doughnut Time owner Damian Griffiths to liquidate the company. "I haven't done a deal to buy the business yet as I don't have approval to use the brand and the media attacks have not been good for the brand," he said via text messages.
Strachotta then goes on to tell his former staffer that the Newtown, Sydney, store was open on Monday as it is "still Damian [Griffiths] company."
"Once he liquidates then all outstanding pays are claimed through FEG," he wrote.
Earlier this week Doughnut Time released a statement announcing the business had been sold for an undisclosed sum to a management group owned by Dan Strachotta.
Despite the wages being received on Thursday, March 8, pay slips sent through an app the company uses internally show the payment date as March 4 – the date Strachotta had promised payment to all of the Doughnut Time employees yet to be paid weeks of back pay.
Strachotta did not respond to multiple requests for comment.