Liverpool’s famous Krazyhouse club and a Wirral McDonald’s franchise are among hundreds of firms named and shamed by the Government tonight for underpaying staff.
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (DBEIS) has published a list of 233 firms it says failed to pay the National Minimum Wage or Living Wage.
Nine Mersey firms are on the list, including well-known city centre restaurant Il Forno – which says it is “outrageous” it has been included on the list over a mistake.
The Government says that 13,000 workers will get around £2m in back pay from the 233 businesses. Those firms have also been fined a record £1.9m.
It says: “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.”
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 £2m 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.”
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.
“Those not paying workers the National Minimum or Living Wage can expect to face the consequences.”
Here are the Mersey firms named for by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (DBEIS)for National Minimum Wage underpayment
The ECHO attempted to contact all local companies on this list.
* Il Forno in Liverpool underpaid £261.83 to one worker.
Spokesman Tim Molloy said that naming the restaurant on the list was “a joke”.
He added: “Il Forno is a long-established business that has always paid the minimum wage. This is an innocent mistake.
“It’s about one employee who was at their request partly paid in childcare vouchers.
“Then the minimum wage people pitch up and say ‘you can’t include that as minimum wage’. Even though they cost the business money and were paid to the individual, it doesn’t count.
“We were unaware there was a breach.
“For HMRC to list Il Forno on a list of businesses that have breached the minimum wage is really outrageous. We’ve said as much to the Revenue.
“I find it utterly inexplicable that HMRC or the Government would encourage businesses to use childcare vouchers and then then when you use them, this happens.”
* Cashnext Ltd, trading as The Krazy House in Liverpool, underpaid £1,012.29 to two workers
* Lipstick, Powder and Polish salon in Woolton underpaid £477.66 to one worker.
A spokeswoman for the business said: “It was an accounting error and it has been paid back”.
* JR’s Pet Shop in Moreton underpaid £458.84 to one worker.
Owner Jorge Ramos told the ECHO that the underpayment was a mistake and that the money had been paid.
* McDonald’s franchisee P Griffiths Foods, of Bromborough, underpaid £420.16 to 41 workers.
A McDonald’s spokesperson said: “We can confirm that following a standard HMRC review, the necessary steps were taken by our franchisee and the case was closed in late 2016.”
* Nursery the Wendy House (Wirral) underpaid £404.38 to one worker.
* Small Wonders Day Care Nursery (Thatto Heath) of St Helens underpaid £3,372.65 to 11 workers.
* St Helens firm Solarcrown (UK) – whose name has now changed to SCUKL 2016 and which once traded as Solarking, underpaid £3,227.28 to seven workers.
SCUKL 2016 is now in liquidation and its liquidators Cowgill Holloway declined to comment.
Its SCUKL 2016 brand names have now been taken over by another unconnected company.