Do we like them?

Do we like Chatime?

Bubble tea chain founded in Taiwan in 2005, run through master franchisees in many countries, including Australia.

Our score: 4 out of 10. Not yet. The Australian arm was penalised for underpaying staff, many of them students on visas. Nothing we found shows enough good to outweigh that.

Chatime started in 2005 in Hsinchu, Taiwan, and grew into one of the biggest bubble tea brands in the world. It is run through local master franchisees. Its parent is La Kaffa International, a Taiwan-listed company, though the sources we found on this were weak.

The big drama is in Australia. In November 2024 the Fair Work Ombudsman said Chatime Australia and its managing director were penalised a total of $132,840 over underpaying staff at company-run stores.

Coverage of the case says 152 workers were affected, including 95 visa holders and 41 juniors under 21. Some were paid flat hourly rates, which missed award rates. That is a bad look for a brand with lots of young customers.

It wasn't the first time. A 2018 audit of corporate stores led to back-pay orders. In 2021 a former Sydney franchisee was penalised $57,800 for underpaying 17 workers. We give a middling-to-low score because the pattern of underpayment is worrying.