Chloe Smith MP says no place to hide with naming of Norwich employer who dodged paying the minimum wage

Member of Parliament for Norwich North, Chloe Smith, today reaffirmed her commitment to protecting those on very low incomes by warning employers that there is no longer anywhere to hide if they fail to pay their staff the minimum wage.

 

Under new rules, set out by the Government, employers who do not comply with the law on the minimum wage will be named, and their arears to their staff made public. Each reported case will be thoroughly investigated by HMRC.

 

Business Minister Jo Swinson MP has named a further 48 employers nationwide who have failed to pay their workers the National Minimum Wage. One of the cases named today is Azad & Sons Ltd, trading as Pizza Hut, Norwich, which neglected to pay £622.58 to 23 workers.

 

Between these 48 employers, workers are owed over £162,000 in arrears, and span sectors including fashion, publishing, hospitality, health and fitness, automotive, care, and retail.

 

This latest round brings the total number of companies named and shamed under the new regime to 210 employers, with total arrears of over £635,000 and total penalties of over £248,000.

 

This action comes as part of a series of measures implemented by the Government to support the low paid. In his Budget last week, the Chancellor announced that the Government would accept the recommendations of the Low Pay Commission that the National Minimum Wage should rise to £6.70 this autumn, on course for a minimum wage that will be over £8 by the end of the decade. The hourly rate for younger workers will also rise, and for apprentices it will go up by 20% - or 57p - to £3.30 an hour; the largest rise on record.

 

The lowest paid workers will have also been taken out of income tax altogether by the actions of this Government. The personal tax-free allowance will rise to £10,800 next year – and then to £11,000 the year after. It means the typical working taxpayer will be over £900 a year better off. It’s a tax cut for 27 million people and means this Government has taken almost 4 million of the lowest paid out of income tax altogether.

 

Locally, Chloe has encouraged employers to pay the Living Wage, where this will not come at the expense of jobs, and continues to work closely with local companies to make Norwich a great place to live, work and run a business.

 

 

Chloe commented:

 

“The minimum wage protects the vulnerable and encourages more people into work. It is the law.

 

“Unscrupulous employers should be crystal clear that there is nowhere to hide if they break the law; they will rightly be named and shamed to ensure that people on low wages are protected”

 

 

Business Minister Jo Swinson MP said:

 

“There’s no excuse for companies that don’t pay staff the wages they’re entitled to – whether by wilfully breaking the law, or making irresponsible mistakes.

 

“The Government is protecting workers by cracking down on employers who ignore minimum wage rules. In addition to naming and shaming, we’ve increased the penalty fines and boosted the resources available to investigate non-compliance.”