Tesco, B&Q and Whitbread scolded in minimum wage crackdown
Labour’s new workers’ rights police force has scolded Tesco, B&Q and Whitbread, and more than 600 other firms, for failing to pay the minimum wage. The Fair Work Agency has published the names of 658 companies which have been fined £7m and forced to return £4m to more than 27,000 workers who have not been [...]
The Fair Work Agency, a new workers' rights police force established in April, has scolded over 600 companies, including Tesco, B&Q, and Whitbread, for failing to pay the minimum wage. The agency has fined 658 companies a total of £7 million and ordered them to return £4 million to more than 27,000 workers who were underpaid. Business secretary Jonathan Reynolds stated that underpaying staff is not a shortcut to success and the government is determined to eliminate this issue.
Tesco was singled out after being found to have failed to pay £227.84 to one worker. The grocery retailer was ordered to pay back £457,000 to 4,530 workers who were not receiving the minimum wage. B&Q, owned by FTSE-100-listed Kingfisher, was also found to have underpaid workers, with the company ordered to return nearly £457,000 to 4,530 employees.
Whitbread, the FTSE 100 hospitality firm that owns Premier Inn, was fined nearly £4,200 for not paying 342 employees the minimum wage. Two McDonald's franchises in Essex and Warwickshire were forced to return over £29,000 to 797 workers. Other companies named in the crackdown include outsourcing giant Serco, fast-food chain Five Guys, and private security firm G4S.
Kate Dearden, the minister for the future of work, emphasized that underpaying staff is illegal and the government will not allow workers to bear the burden of their employer's failure to follow the rules. The Fair Work Agency has been given new powers to search individuals and work premises, seize evidence, and enforce employment law. Matthew Taylor, chair of the agency's advisory board, stressed that paying the minimum wage is not optional and most employers want to comply with the law.
Both Tesco and B&Q acknowledged their mistakes and stated that they have taken steps to rectify the situation. Tesco expressed regret for an "isolated administrative error," while B&Q mentioned that the affected workers were paid in full in July of the previous year. Serco and McDonald's franchises also apologized and took steps to resolve the pay issues.
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