Student-Run Hipster Café Allegedly Hit with Complaints About Late Payment of Salaries

By
George Yang
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Do you know that you’re supposed to get paid every month, and that the longest your cheesepie boss can delay your salary is seven days?

No?

Then let me promote our YouTube video, which lists down the 10 facts about your salary, before you read on:

And to some of us who’re broke every end of the month, this should be common sense: I mean, if my boss doesn’t pay me on time, I’ll just stop coming to work. After all, last I know, bills don’t pay themselves.

However, it turns out that one café in Singapore has been hit with complaints about late payment of salary, and according to some of their former and current staff, the delay isn’t within that seven days’ grace.

Here’s what you should know.

Superfudo, Café That Looks Hip and IG Enough

Honestbee is a startup and looks cool to everyone: the office’s cool, the logo is cute and everyone seems to be happily working in an Instagram-worthy place that’s packed with mill—

Oh, sorry, I mixed up the business.

Superfudo is a café that sells protein bowls that look like they’re made for Instagram.

It got into the news in April this year, with impressive claims of the café hiring an entire crew that’s made up of mere students.

What’s even more impressive is that its monthly labour cost is less than $15,000—that includes CPF contributions, too.

And there’s more: back in April, they’ve two outlets, and the first store has already turned in a profit after 4.5 months while the new outlet was projected to break even in about four months as well.

It’s so impressive, as of late 2017, they’ve received 2,100 job applications.

Image: Reddit

The co-founder then gave an advice to other F&B establishments: follow their system of employing students.

And now, they’re back in the news.

Not with six new outlets, or three new IG-worthy bowls.

But for complaints about late salaries by their employees.

Employees Filed Complaints with MOM

When one has to file a complaint with MOM, you know it’s deep shit.

I mean, if my boss doesn’t pay me on time, I’ll buy a voodoo doll and curse him first, then politely ask him the reason for the delay.

However, on 30 June 2019, it turned out that not one, not two but fourteen employees complained to the MOM on late payment of salary from the company.

MON told the media that they would be looking into the issues, saying, “If there is any breach of the Employment Act, MOM will take appropriate action against the firm.”

According to the co-founder (yes, the same one), he said that the delay was mere a couple of weeks. “There has been a couple of weeks in delay because of partnership change and bank account changes. But all the employees have been paid weeks ago. We informed them (that there would be a delay) without having to give away too much detail on the partnership changes…I know a couple of them are unhappy and banded together but it is not fair to say that they are unpaid.”

Lest your maths is as bad as our accountant, a couple of weeks means fourteen days.

However, then TODAYonline interviewed some of the employees and the story told was different.

According to one, who started work last October, some of them have to wait for a month. Another said that she didn’t put her name in for shifts due to late payment of close to a month.

The first outlet has allegedly ceased operations two weeks because of lack of manpower.

The employees, who apparently were open to giving their names (therefore not certain if they’re still working here), also complained about the heavy workload due to the lack of staff.

A check on their Facebook Page reveals nothing newsworthy, but everything Instagram-worthy.

So, is it a case of disgruntled (fourteen) employees, or a case of honestbee?

You decide.

Watch this for a complete summary of what REALLY happened to Qoo10, and why it's like a K-drama:

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George Yang
Email: [email protected]