Chatswood pizzeria to face court over dough dispute

A director of Chatswood’s Cedar Dough bakery and pizzeria has denied she knowingly underpaid a young worker, claiming the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) had taken the matter “out of proportion”.

The business and company director Jalila Assaf face total fines of nearly $220,000, after the ombudsman revealed on Monday it had commenced legal action. 

The FWO said that in a period of around eight weeks in 2025, the pizzeria underpaid a casual employee $1,288. The FWO said this was a combination of unpaid weekend rates, public holiday rates and casual loading.

Facing court are PE Jayz Pty Ltd, which operates Chatswood’s Cedar Dough bakery and pizza bar, and director Assaf.

Court documents claim an investigation into the business’ compliance with the Fair Work Act began following a complaint. A compliance notice was sent to the business — via email and post — on September 17, 2025. 

This notice directed the business to “calculate and pay to the Employee the outstanding amounts owed” by October 16 and send Fair Work proof of that by October 23. 

On October 14, the business sent an email to Fair Work containing “proof of payment of an amount of $100 to the Employee”, according to the FWO, which claimed this “did not remedy the direct effects” detailed in the notice.

The FWO said it gave the business multiple deadline extensions, and that Cedar Dough  failed to meet the final deadline of November 3. It also alleged the business failed to provide payslips to the employee, which is an offence under the Fair Work Act.

For the alleged failure to comply with the Compliance Notice, PE Jayz faces a penalty of up to $99,000 and Assaf faces a penalty of up to $19,800. For the alleged pay slip contravention, PE Jayz faces a penalty of up to $99,000.

Assaf told the Lorikeet the dispute had been taken “out of proportion” by the Fair Work Ombudsman.

When asked whether she had ever underpaid an employee, Assaf said: “No, I have not.” She blamed any mistakes on accounting errors and said she had employed a new accountant who had “fixed everything”.

Acting Fair Work Ombudsman Rachel Volzke said: “Any employees with concerns about their pay or entitlements should contact us for free advice and assistance.”

Thumbnail: Google Maps, Cedar Dough Instagram