The Court held that the 6-year limitation period in s 545(5) of the Fair Work Act 2009 runs from the end of each pay period to which an alleged underpayment relates, not from the date of termination of employment or the date of the final payment. Each non-payment gives rise to a separate cause of action and contraventions are not treated as cumulative and continuing until resolved. The Court also found that proceedings commenced on the date the filing fee was paid and the originating application was lodged in substantially compliant form, rather than the later date on which the Court affixed its seal, but this did not save the claim from being statute-barred.
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