Fun Tea assault victim says she is ‘afraid to go outside’ after attack at work

A video of a waitress being slapped and kicked by a patron in Adelaide’s Chinatown precinct sparked public outrage when it went viral on social media earlier this year.

Six months later, the victim is breaking her silence.

In an exclusive interview with the ABC, Lynn* said her mental health has declined as a result of the video, and she is afraid she will never work again.

“After this incident, I was advised by my doctor to see a psychologist,” Lynn said.

“I was afraid to go outside, just so afraid of meeting other people, of strangers, that I was afraid to go to class when school started.”

The assault occurred after Lynn confronted her boss at Adelaide’s Fun Tea restaurant with allegations of underpayment.

A customer, Lei “Gavin” Guo, 39, was seen stepping between the pair and then slapped and kicked the 20-year-old waitress.

“My first reaction was [it was] unbelievable,” Lynn said.

Guo has pleaded guilty to one count of assault and will be sentenced in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Wednesday.

In a YouTube video recorded after the incident, Fun Tea’s owner denied any involvement with Guo but admitted to paying Lynn just $10 an hour.

Safe Work SA and the Fair Work Ombudsman have both launched investigations into Fun Tea, which are ongoing.

The Ombudsman has also launched an audit of more than 60 businesses in Adelaide’s Chinatown and Central Market precincts as a result of the video.

‘Wage theft in Adelaide is out of control’

Founder of worker’s advocacy group SA Labour Info Hub, Jackie Chen, said wage theft continues unchecked right across Adelaide and in all industries.

“Wage theft in Adelaide is totally out of control,” he said.

“Wineries, restaurants … there’s even a law firm paying its receptionist $14 an hour,” he said.

But despite protests and public condemnation, Mr Chen reported that his organisation had seen a 40 per cent decline in inquiries from workers since the video went viral.

“There’s more workers afraid to speak out, they’re afraid to be black list[ed],” he said.

Since the video was posted, Lynn has been subject to derogatory comments anonymously posted on a local Chinese forum.

“This woman must be known to all of you,” one user wrote.

“As a service staff: arrogant and domineering, abusive to customers.

“As an employee: when disagreement happens, she directly called three people to make trouble, and then be slapped.”

As an international student, Lynn said she needed work to make ends meet, but has remained unemployed since the incident.

“I didn’t find a job, and I didn’t dare to look for a job,” she said.

“After the blacklist was shared, I felt that none of them would hire me.”

Adelaide’s reputation tarnished

The Fun Tea video has been viewed more than 55 million times on Chinese social media platform Weibo.

Mr Chen said that alone had damaged Adelaide’s reputation as a “safe place” for other international students.

“A lot of people have seen [the video] and they were thinking that in Adelaide there’s a lot of wage theft going on and workers don’t have basic human rights,” he said.

Lynn said she was shocked to discover pay rates for international students were so low.

“When I came here, I knew that the working conditions offered to international students in Australia was that the minimum hourly wage … $20,” she said.

“However, now that I’m here, I find that this is not the case in reality.”

Lynn said she’s planning to leave Adelaide, in search of a fresh start interstate.