Three Northamptonshire businesses on Government list of companies who underpaid employees

Three Northamptonshire business have been named and shamed on a Government list released today of 233 UK companies that underpaid their workers.
Three Northamptonshire businesses have been named and shamedThree Northamptonshire businesses have been named and shamed
Three Northamptonshire businesses have been named and shamed

More than 13,000 of the UK’s lowest paid workers will get around £2 million in back pay as part of the Government’s scheme to name employers who have failed to pay the national minimum wage and living wage.

Tudor Manor Nursery Limited in Duston was ranked 102 on the list after failing to pay £1,029.30 to one worker, Kingsthorpe Upper Crust Catering Services was 176th after it failed to pay £347.21 to three workers, and Washbrook Farm Limited in Aston le Walls, South Northamptonshire, was 222nd after it failed to pay £135.65 to one of its employees.

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As well as paying back staff the money owed, employers on the list - published by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy - have been fined a record £1.9 million by the Government.

Tudor Manor Day Nursery and Upper Crust have been approached for comment.

Washbrook Farm refused to comment.

Among the most prolific offenders across the country were retail, hairdressing and hospitality businesses in what is the 12th round of Government naming and shaming.

Since 2013, the scheme has identified £6 million back pay for 40,000 workers, with 1,200 employers fined £4 million.

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Business Minister Margot James said: "It is against the law to pay workers less than legal minimum wage rates, short-changing ordinary working people and undercutting honest employers.

"Today’s naming round identifies a record £2 million of back pay for workers and sends the clear message to employers that the Government will come down hard on those who break the law."

Common errors made by employers in this round included deducting money from pay packets to pay for uniforms, failure to account for overtime hours, and wrongly paying apprentice rates to workers.

Melissa Tatton, director at HM Revenue and Customs said: "HMRC is committed to getting money back into the pockets of underpaid workers, and continues to crack down on employers who ignore the law.

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"Those not paying workers the National Minimum or Living Wage can expect to face the consequences."

There are currently around 2,000 open cases which HMRC is investigating. Eligible employers will be named and shamed after their cases have been closed.

The Government has committed £25.3 million for minimum wage enforcement in 2017 to 2018, as well as a £1.7 million awareness campaign earlier this year.