Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) and its brokerage arm have been sued by the country’s workplace watchdog for not paying 7,425 workers $12m (A$16.44m).

The issue, which dates to 2010, was disclosed by CBA to the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) and the Australian Securities Exchange in 2019.

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The FWO alleged that CBA and Commonwealth Securities (CommSec) breached clauses of their enterprise agreements that required the firms to ensure that their employees were paid as per set standards.

FWO Sandra Parker said: “We allege that CBA and CommSec failed to meet their lawful obligations to ensure employees were better off overall, which led to thousands of CBA and CommSec employees across the country being financially disadvantaged year after year.

“Businesses have a responsibility to their employees, customers and the Australian community to get it right by prioritising workplace law compliance, investing in their payroll systems and conducting audits. Boards should treat the lawful payment of their employees as a core governance requirement.”

The regulator is seeking a maximum penalty of A$666,000 per serious breach and up to A$66,600 for non-serious breaches.

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Meanwhile, CBA has unveiled a new digital lending product in partnership with fintech Waddle.

The new offering, called Stream Working Capital, is aimed at small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and uses businesses’ outstanding invoices as loan security to lend money.

CBA executive general manager of business lending Clare Morgan said: “Using invoices to access credit provides peace of mind for businesses who can now access cash locked up in their invoices, assisting them to pay suppliers or hire employees.”