Argos, the high street retailer now owned by Sainsburys, has to pay back £1.4m owed to employers, according to the latest list of employers named for underpaying their workers the national minimum wage (NMW) or national living wage (NLW)
There is a total of 233 employers on this quarter’s list, published by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), which says more than 13,000 workers will now get around £2m in back pay.
Argos heads the list, having failed to pay £1,461,881to 12,176 workers. Second is Pearson Anderson, a Leicester-based recruitment firm which owed £ £49,800 to 169 workers, followed by Fusion Hairdesign in Harrow, which failed to pay £24,352 to six workers.
In addition, employers on the list have been fined a record £1.9m, Retail, hairdressing and hospitality businesses were among the most prolific offenders.
Argos is thought to have failed to calculate some workers’ hours correctly, as time spent going through security checks or attending morning briefing at the start or end of shifts was not included in their daily rates.
Business Minister Margot James said: ‘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.’
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.
