The settings, based across England and Scotland, are among 191 businesses ‘named and shamed’ by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) for breaking the law by not paying the national minimum wage.
The list, published yesterday (5 August), refers to breaches that took place between 2011 and 2018. Named employers have since been made to pay back what they owed, along with a fine. The Government has been publishing its 'naming and shaming' list since 2013.
Nursery World contacted a number of nurseries on the list for a response.
Caroline Koenig, owner of Walker’s Private Day Nursery in Gloucestershire told Nursery World she had wrongly paid an apprentice after the training provider ‘neglected’ to tell her that after the first year of employment, they must be paid the national minimum wage.
She explained, ‘I undertook my first ever apprentice through a training provider, to help the younger generation get on the career ladder.
‘The training provider neglected to tell me on sign up the rules – that after one year, an apprentice must be paid minimum wage for their age (even though the course is for 18mths).
‘I had already corrected the issue long before the HMRC came to visit. But as I had identified it, they had to do an investigation.
‘Had the training provider ensured I knew – this would never have happened.’
As of April 2021, workers aged 23 and over should be paid the national living wage rate of £8.91. The rate for 21-22-year-olds is £8.36, and for 18-20-year-olds, £6.56. Workers aged 16-17, should be paid £4.62, while the rate for apprentices is £4.30.
According to BEIS, the employers named on the list underpaid workers in the following ways:
- 47 per cent wrongly deducted pay from workers’ wages, including for uniform and expenses.
- 30 per cent failed to pay workers for all the time they had worked, such as when they worked overtime.
- 19 per cent paid the incorrect apprenticeship rate.
BEIS states, ‘Minimum wage breaches can occur when workers are being paid on or just above the minimum wage rate, and then have deductions from their pay for uniform or accommodation.’
Following the breaches, the Government has published new guidance to ensure employers know what they need to do to pay their apprentices, and all workers, correctly.
Employers who pay workers less than the minimum wage have to pay back the money at current minimum wage rates. They also face ‘hefty’ financial penalties of up to 200 per cent of arrears – capped at £20,000 per worker – paid to the Government.
'Difficult times for all workers'
Chair of the Low Pay Commission Bryan Sanderson said, ‘These are very difficult times for all workers, particularly those on low pay who are often undertaking critical tasks in a variety of key sectors including care. The minimum wage provides a crucial level of support and compliance is essential for the benefit of both the recipients and our society as a whole.’
The National Day Nurseries Association’s (NDNA) chief executive Purnima Tanuku commented, ‘Nurseries desperately want to recognise and financially reward their qualified and experienced staff members but are not able to unless the Government tackles the chronic underfunding of early years.’
