Grill'd is an Australian food chain specialising in burgers. It was founded by Simon Crowe in 2004 in Hawthorn, Melbourne. There were five restaurants established by the end of 2005, 35 restaurants in 2010, and 125 restaurants as of late-2016. Through the Local Matters program, each Grill'd restaurant donates $500 monthly to three local community groups split $300 / $100 / $100, with customers voting for their preferred community group by placing a token into a jar.
Controversies
In June 2015 it came to public attention that the Toowong franchise had selected anti-abortion group Cherish Life to receive funds from the Local Matters program. Founder Simon Crowe apologised for the alleged mistake, stating that Grill'd is pro-choice. The restaurant chain encountered controversy in July 2015 when allegations arose that Kahlani Pyrah, a former employee of the Camberwell franchise, had been removed from her position after beginning a wage case with the Fair Work Commission to overturn a contract which set pay below the minimum award rate. Grill'd officially denied the allegations, claiming that bullying of managers was the reason for the dismissal. Pyrah launched a Federal Court case in a bid to get her job back. An interim Federal Court ruling ordered Grill'd to reinstate her, allowing the wage case hearing to go ahead. At the hearing, a ruling by the Fair Work Commission forced Grill'd to raise the wages of employees at its Camberwell franchise to be in line the award rate. Jess Walsh of the hospitality union United Voice said that the ruling was an "enormous win" for Pyrah and Grill'd employees. A planned unfair dismissal hearing at the Federal Court was called off after Pyrah and Grill'd reached an out-of-court settlement. In May 2016 a staff member of the Point Cook franchise denied a female customer from accessing a two-for-one offer intended to encourage men to bring a friend to the restaurant. A spokeswoman later apologised, stating that the customer was given wrong information and that the offer was open to women as well. In 2019 serious allegations were made against Grill’d by leading Australian newspapers, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. Grill’d is accused of using a government-subsidised traineeship program to pay staff less. Managers work under constant pressure to keep wages down. There have been ‘serious’ food safety concerns at 1-in-10 company-owned Grill’d restaurants. Some franchisees claim they are unfairly treated by the company, and Grill’d co-founder Simon Crowe allegedly fabricated signatures on applications for liquor licences.
