Security camera footage showing pub patrons involved in sexual activity in an elevator was edited into a video and screened at an awards event for the Merivale hospitality group.
The video, which did not conceal the identities of those involved, featured patrons having sex in the lift and urinating in public at several of the hospitality group’s venues.
The video was shown on multiple screens during The Merivales Awards at Ivy in Sydney’s CBD accompanied with the phrase ‘Big Brother is always watching’.
The video was revealed as part of an ABC investigation into Merivale, a billion dollar business owned by Justin Hemmes, which operates 81 restaurants, pubs and bars on Australia’s east coast.
Two female attendees who leaked the footage reported that its screening was met with uncomfortable laughter and ‘sounds of shock’.
‘I kind of couldn’t believe what I was seeing,’ one said.
They both left Merivale shortly after the event and said the reel was ‘reflective’ of the group’s culture which former employees have recently described as ‘toxic’.
‘Maybe some of those girls in those videos were highly intoxicated, they could have been raped,’ another added.
The hospitality group run by Justin Hemmes (pictured) has had a series of shocking allegations levelled against it by former employees and patrons
But a Merivale spokesperson said the footage was played before a ‘private, invitation-only, event’ and that ‘no complaints were received about the reel in question’.
‘Merivale venues are comprehensively monitored by CCTV, a matter which is notified to patrons and staff with clear signage to that effect,’ a spokesperson told the ABC.
‘The CCTV covers public spaces in our venue, which is both lawful and standard practice in large hospitality venues.
‘It is lawful for Merivale to capture this footage and there can be no reasonable expectation of privacy for any patron attending.
‘For the avoidance of doubt, Merivale is not aware of any complaints arising from ‘the Merivales’ in 2017.’
That was not the only serious accusation made against the hospitality giant in the ABC program.
Jess Helsinki, a female patron of the Ivy, alleged that an employee tried to coerce her and her friend into having sex with VIP guests.
Ms Helsinki told the ABC they were looking for their group of mates when a male employee approached them and said he would help them.
However, alarm bells started to go off when he ushered them into a service elevator and into a VIP room before being told to sit on either side of a group of men.
‘The man next to me leant over and said to me: “So when did you get into the industry?”,’ Ms Helsinki said.
He clarified that he meant the sex industry and said the Ivy employee told the group that the pair were ‘sex workers’ and were ‘going to spend the night’ with them.
Jess Helsinki, a female patron of the Ivy, alleged that an employee tried to coerce her and her friend into having sex with VIP guests
Ms Helsinki attempted to raise the issue with Merivale management but was told an internal investigation found ‘no information to support the claims’.
Management suggested she take the matter up with police, and it is still under investigation.
In another instance reported on Wednesday, a former employee of Coogee Pavilion claimed that a colleague drugged and raped her at his home one night in 2018.
‘He was much bigger than me and he just kind of pinned me against the wall,’ she said.
‘The whole time I was making it very clear that I wanted him to stop, and he wouldn’t.’
The woman, who was 22 at the time, reported the incident to the company, but claims was forced to continue working with the person she accused for the following ‘month or two’.
The woman alleged that management told her ‘there’s nothing we can do’ because she had not filed a police report.
Daily Mail Australia contacted Merivale for comment.
