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Attention: economics, national and regional industrial correspondents

Thousands of workers still cheated out of the minimum wage

Over four and a half years after the minimum wage was introduced, the TUC has calculated that thousands of workers are still being cheated out of the minimum wage by dishonest employers.

To try to help track down those employers who are deliberately avoiding paying their staff £4.50 an hour (or £3.80 an hour if they’re aged 18-21), the TUC and the Low Pay Network have today (Wednesday) published a new edition of their enforcement guide to the minimum wage.

Although around £13 million has been recovered from lawbreaking bosses since the minimum wage was introduced on 1 April 1999, the TUC estimates that around 170,000 workers are still taking less money home than the law says they should be.

Enforcing the National Minimum Wage - which updates the first joint guide published in 2001 - sets out in plain and simple terms how unions and advice workers can make sure all workers are earning at the very least the minimum wage.

The DTI-funded booklet gives advice on how unions, low pay units and advice centres can ensure local employers are paying the minimum wage and covers the groups of workers entitled to receive the minimum wage, and those, such as 16 and 17 year olds, which are currently exempt.

Enforcing the National Minimum Wage points out that often all that is needed to make an employer start paying the minimum wage is for a union or an adviser to bring non-payment to their attention. But more unwilling employers will need the involvement of the Inland Revenue before they start paying their workers the legal minimum.

TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said: 'With millions of pounds already retrieved from employers failing to pay the minimum wage, the Inland Revenue teams responsible for enforcement are clearly doing a good job. But TUC figures suggest that there are many more workers out there still losing out. There must be no hiding place for rogue bosses. Our guide aims to make it easier for unions and advice agencies to root them out and ensure everyone gets the wage to which they are legally entitled.'

Sarah Pugh, Employment Rights Development Officer at the West Midlands Employment and Low Pay Unit said: ' Being paid a minimum amount for working is a basic right which no worker should miss out on - this guide is intended to help advisers and union reps to understand the law so they can better assist workers to secure their rights'.

Workers being cheated out of the minimum wage are most likely to be employed in the clothing, footwear and retail sectors, or work as hairdressers, domestic workers or housekeepers. Many migrant workers employed by gangmasters in agriculture and food production, as well as in unregistered textile factories are also frequently paid less than the national minimum wage.

Notes to Editors:

The TUC figures on the numbers of people who are being paid hourly rates less than the legal minimum are based on Government figures which suggest that 330,000 people are not getting the adult rate. The TUC estimates that some 160,000 employees are probably not earning £4.50 an hour for legitimate reasons (perhaps because they are on accredited training courses and are getting the £3.80 training rate or are being paid less an hour because they receive free or subsidised accommodation). This leaves 170,000 who should be getting the minimum wage but who are not.

A copy of ‘Enforcing the National Minimum Wage - a practical guide is available at http://www.tuc.org.uk/extras/minimumwage.pdf The guide is free and copies can be obtained from TUC Publications on 0207 467 1294 or the West Midlands Employment and Low Pay Unit on 0121 643 3972.

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There are four low pay units: West Midlands Employment and Low Pay Unit 0121 643 3972 www.wmlowpay.org.uk Greater Manchester Low Pay Unit 0161 953 4024 www.gmlpu.org.uk Scottish Low Pay Unit 0141 552 1044 and the Pay and Employment Rights Service (Yorkshire) Ltd 08900 591342.

Contacts: Media enquiries: Liz Chinchen 020 7467 1248 or 07699 744115 (pager) or email media@tuc.org.uk or Sarah Pugh on 0121 633 4071.

Press release (800 words) issued 15 Oct 2003