On 1st October there will be some changes to the National Minimum Wage rates. All employers need to be aware of the new rates which are as follows:
£4 per hour (16 to 17
years old)
£5.55 per hour (18 to 20
years old)
£6.95 per hour (21 to 24
years old)
£7.20 per hour (25 and
over)
The Government recently
publicly named and shamed 198 companies who failed to pay the minimum wage to
their employees. These companies owed a total of £466,219 in arrears and
included football clubs, recruitment firms, care homes and hairdressers.
Top of the list was a
London restaurant which owed almost £100,000 to 30 employees. The Department
for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has confirmed to us that all the
money owed had been paid back to the workers.
Remember that it is not
only the employee that could make a claim if they are not being paid the
National Minimum Wage. In addition, HMRC can pursue a criminal prosecution
against employers who are suspected of flouting the National Minimum Wage law.
There are 6 criminal
offences under the National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Regulations 2016:
1. Employer refuses or
wilfully neglects to pay minimum wage.
2. Employer fails to
keep or preserve records.
3. Employer knowingly
causes or allows false entry in records.
4. Employer produces or
furnishes false records or information.
5. Employer
intentionally delays or obstructs compliance officer.
6. Employer refuses or
neglects to answer any questions or produce documents for a compliance officer.
The maximum fine for
these offences is £20,000 per worker. Therefore to avoid a fine and criminal
record, employers should check that their employees are being paid the National
Minimum Wage and that appropriate pay records are being maintained.
Here at The Customer
Service Blog we passionately believe that if employees are treated well, then
there is much more chance that they will deliver exceptional service to the
customer, and this is mentioned in several previous blog articles (see the June
blog archive for details).
With this thought in
mind, we might even start doing a bit of 'naming and shaming' ourselves. You
have been warned!!
FOR MORE DETAILS VISIT:
www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1902
FOR MORE DETAILS VISIT:
www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1902