Business

Debenhams underpaid almost 12,000 workers

UK government names and shames employers that did not pay minimum wage

Debenhams was the most prominent name on a list of the latest offenders dominated by smaller, local businesses

Thu Feb 16 2017 - 08:27

Department store chain Debenhams underpaid almost 12,000 workers, the UK government said, as it "named and shamed" its largest ever list of employers that did not pay the legal minimum wage.

Debenhams underpaid 11,858 workers by a total of almost £135,000, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said on Wednesday in an emailed statement.

The retailer was the most prominent name on a list of the latest offenders dominated by smaller, local businesses ranging from hotels and restaurants to nurseries, plumbers and hair salons. In total, 360 businesses underpaid 15,520 workers by £995,233.

“Every worker in the UK is entitled to at least the national minimum or living wage and this government will ensure they get it,” business minister Margot James said in the statement.

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The government is “sending the clear message to employers that minimum-wage abuses will not go unpunished”.

‘Technical error’

Debenhams put the underpayment down to a “technical error in payroll calculations”, identified by the tax agency, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs.

“As a responsible employer, Debenhams is committed to the national minimum wage, and as soon as the error was identified by a routine HMRC audit last year, we reimbursed all those affected,” the retailer said in an emailed statement.

“We have apologised to all our colleagues affected and have taken steps to ensure it cannot happen again.”

Since introducing the name-and-shame lists in 2013, the business department has identified more than 1,000 employers in breach of the rules, charging them more than £2 million in fines and identifying arrears owed to employees totalling more than £4.5 million.

Excuses provided by employers include making tips count towards pay, docking earnings to pay for staff Christmas parties, and making staff buy their own uniform, the department said.

The standard minimum wage is £7.20 an hour and will rise to £7.50 an hour in April.

– Bloomberg

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