The list of 198 firms owed a total of £466,219 in arrears and included football clubs, recruitment firms, care homes and hairdressers. “Getting workers the money they are owed is important but simply naming and shaming the employers isn’t deterring others from doing it”.
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“In the past year we have recovered pay arrears in excess of £10 million for more than 58,000 workers”.
He said: “It’s a disgrace that we have appeared on the list over a pure accident”.
Carole Langman, business manager at the dog training school, said: “It was a total misunderstanding about an apprentice who should have moved into a different pay band when they reached their 19th birthday. That’s the only one we’ve ever had in 45 years of being in business and it’s all been settled”.
The latest list released from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy is the largest yet, with nearly 200 employers across the country being called out and fined.
Top Tread in High Wycombe was named at 132 on the list for owing £402.25 to one worker.
However, the Living Wage Foundation calculates that a rate of £8.25 per hour is required to meet the cost of living, rising to £9.40 in London. It’s something I’ve learnt the hard way and I didn’t have an accountant at the time, now I have an accountant.
Martin Small of TM West Plumbing said the Government’s decision to drag up their case, which was rectified more than two years ago was very unfair as they had outsourced the hiring of two apprentices to another company and had not realised they were not being paid the right amount.
The scheme to name employers who break minimum wage law came into effect in 2011.
They said the Government have been very good at rolling out schemes for younger people, but they need to work harder to support businesses who are taking them on.
That means making sure everyone gets paid the wages they are owed – including our new, higher, National Living Wage.
The national living wage for workers aged 25 and over was introduced this April, meaning a pay rise of more than £900-a-year for someone previously working full-time on the national minimum wage.
“It is a shame because a number of people who’ve spent time with us, on work experience placements, have gone on to win successful job roles across the football and sports industry, at the highest level – here in the Premier League and EFL and others overseas”.
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SLW Ltd was reported as having owed £10,212.05 to 98 workers, while Safe Night Security was reported as having owed £156 to one worker. A spokesman for the company told Viister.co.uk that the workers pay fell below the minimum wage after they contributed to a pension fund, and that the firm had since made up the difference.
