South Yorkshire firms named and shamed for underpaying staff

Firms in South Yorkshire have been named and shamed for underpaying their staff.
Businesses have been named and shamedBusinesses have been named and shamed
Businesses have been named and shamed

They are among 360 named by the Government on a list of businesses who underpaid employees to the tune of £1 million altogether.

It is the longest list of offenders ever released by the Government and includes hairdressers, shops and care home owners.

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The new list means that more than 1,000 employers have been named and shamed for not paying the minimum wage since the Government started identifying them in 2013.

Retail giant Debenhams appeared at the top of the list, accused of failing to pay almost £135,000 to just under 12,000 workers.

The company said it made a technical error in its payroll calculations, which resulted in an average underpayment of around £10 per person to affected workers in 2015.

Seven Sheffield firms appear on the list, three in Doncaster and one in Barnsley.

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In Sheffield, West Street Enterprises Ltd, trading as Subway on West Street, failed to pay £3,728.55 to 18 workers.

And ASG Subway Limited, trading as Subway on Glossop Road, failed to pay £141.95 to 10 workers.

Loljack Ltd, trading as Cash Converters in Hillsborough, failed to pay £682.56 to four workers.

Lauren Elwis, trading as Hair Flair in Hillsborough, failed to pay £1,574.65 to one worker.

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Contact Centre 33 Ltd, in Shalesmoor, failed to pay £404.32 to two workers.

Urban 1/4 Ltd, in Kelham Island, failed to pay £173.18 to one worker.

And Tanvir Mohudin Sheikh, trading as Millhouses Post Office, failed to pay £137.97 to two workers.

In Doncaster, Wilfreda Luxury Coaches Limited, trading as Wilfreda Beehive, failed to pay £827.32 to three workers.

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IPS Umbrella Limited, trading as Income Plus Group, failed to pay £676.80 to one worker.

And Femiyabs Limited, trading as Broodspring, failed to pay £230.23 to one worker.

Static Solutions Limited in Barnsley failed to pay £2,136.94 to four workers.

Business minister Margot James said: "Every worker in the UK is entitled to at least the national minimum or living wage and this government will ensure they get it.

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"That is why we have named and shamed more than 350 employers who failed to pay the legal minimum, sending the clear message to employers that minimum wage abuses will not go unpunished."

Unions welcomed the announcement, but called for more prosecutions - there have been 13 since 2007.

TUC general secretary Frances O'Grady said: "This should be a wake-up call for employers who value their reputation. If you cheat your staff out of the minimum wage you will be named and shamed.

"But we also need to see prosecutions and higher fines for the most serious offenders, especially those who deliberately flout the law."

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Unite assistant general secretary Steve Turner said: "The Government needs to crack down further on employers who failed to pay the national minimum wage to some of the most low-paid and vulnerable workers in the country.

"The fact that the Government has mounted only 13 prosecutions for non-compliance since 2007 is pathetic.

"In America, bad bosses are jailed and heavily fined for 'wage theft' which is what this is, exploiting workers in such a shameful fashion."

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