Some employers learn from their first run-in with the Fair Work Ombudsman. Ansa Finance, it seems, is not one of them.

On 9 October 2026 the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) announced it had secured more than $470,000 in court penalties against Toorak-based short-term personal loan broker Ansa Finance Pty Ltd, a related company, AFSL Group Pty Ltd, and their manager, Joshua Fuoco. It is the third time the regulator has won penalties against Ansa Finance and Mr Fuoco — and the first time against AFSL Group.

What happened

Four workers came to the FWO for help: three employed by Ansa Finance and one by AFSL Group, working in insurance, broking and customer relationship roles across 2021 and 2022. Several were visa holders, and one was just 20 years old.

The core problem was simple and stark: the workers weren’t paid for some or all of the work they did. The FWO alleged combined underpayments of around $30,800 when it filed the case in December 2025. Individual losses at Ansa Finance ran to roughly $13,100, $6,900 and $2,600. AFSL Group’s sole affected employee — a visa holder — worked for four months and received nothing, despite being owed about $6,900.

The court also found the companies:

• shortchanged workers on public holiday, annual leave, personal leave and notice entitlements
• failed to pay staff frequently enough, as the law requires
• didn’t issue pay slips to two of the workers
• ignored Notices to Produce from a Fair Work Inspector, handing over only a single employee details form despite warnings and extra time

Sacked for asking to be paid

The most serious finding was adverse action. Ansa Finance and AFSL Group terminated two workers in response to them asking for their outstanding entitlements. In one case, it was a worker’s query about unpaid superannuation that triggered the dismissal — conduct the court described as particularly egregious.

Asking to be paid what you are owed is a workplace right. Firing someone for exercising it is unlawful under the Fair Work Act, and courts treat it severely.

The penalties

The Federal Circuit and Family Court ordered Ansa Finance to pay $233,100 and Mr Fuoco to pay $46,620, with further penalties imposed against AFSL Group. In total, the FWO secured $478,880.

Neither respondent turned up to the penalty hearing in August — Mr Fuoco emailed the court that morning to say he wouldn’t attend.

The judge was blunt. She found the conduct serious, repeated, systematic and exploitative, pointed to the habitual non-compliance of Mr Fuoco and Ansa Finance, and criticised their “cavalier disregard for the integrity of the Fair Work regulatory system”. Because of that history, the court refused to apply a totality discount, and set Mr Fuoco’s penalty at a level intended to deter him personally.

Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth called the conduct extremely serious.

A long track record

This case didn’t come out of nowhere.

• March 2024: The FWO secured $99,900 in penalties against Ansa Finance and Mr Fuoco across two separate cases, after the business ignored Compliance Notices requiring it to back-pay five finance brokers.
• 2018: The Federal Court banned Mr Fuoco from carrying on or being involved in a financial services business for 10 years, after finding he had been knowingly involved in unconscionable and misleading conduct.
• July 2025: The Federal Court found Mr Fuoco in contempt for breaching that ban between March 2019 and April 2023 through five companies — including Ansa Finance and AFSL Group. He received a 12-month prison sentence, wholly suspended for two years, and undertook never to be involved in financial services or credit again.

Even so, reporting on the penalty judgment notes he remained an officeholder in five other ASIC-registered companies at the time of the hearing.

Why this matters

Managers are personally on the hook. The FWO routinely pursues individuals involved in breaches, not just the company. It filed 88 cases involving an alleged accessory in the two years to June 2025. A company structure is not a shield.

Repeat offenders pay more. Prior contraventions push penalties up and make discounts less likely. Each return trip to court costs more than the last.

Ignoring the regulator backfires. Failing to comply with Compliance Notices and Notices to Produce is a contravention in its own right — and it was the basis of the earlier penalties in this saga.

Visa holders have the same rights as everyone else. The FWO has made protecting migrant and young workers a priority, filing 171 cases involving visa-holder workers and securing $39 million in penalties in the eight financial years to June 2025.

What employers should take from this

• Pay staff for all work performed, on time and at the right rate.
• Issue pay slips within one working day of payday.
• Treat any question about pay or super as a prompt to check and fix — never as grounds for discipline or dismissal.
• Respond fully and on time to Compliance Notices and Notices to Produce.
• If you’re unsure, ask the FWO or get advice early. It is far cheaper than court.

If you’re a worker

If you think you’ve been underpaid or treated unfairly for raising a pay issue, contact the Fair Work Ombudsman for free help at fairwork.gov.au or on 13 13 94. Visa holders can seek help too — the FWO has an arrangement with the Department of Home Affairs designed to protect visa holders who come forward.