Oldham Athletic among dozens of North West businesses 'named and shamed' over minimum wages

Oldham Athletic and Crewe Alexandra football clubs are among the 191 businesses 'named and shamed' by the Government for breaking the minimum wage law.

A total of £2.1 million was found to be owed to more than 34,000 workers following investigations by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs dating back to 2011.

Named employers have been made to pay back what they owed, and were fined an additional £3.2 million.

Businesses named by the Government include retail giant John Lewis, which said it was “surprised and disappointed” to be on the list released by the Business Department.

Crewe Alexandra are among the firms named in the list. Credit: PA

Which North West businesses are on the list?

  • Mr Mohammed Asif, trading as Supawash Laundrette, Rochdale, OL12, failed to pay £4972.55 to 3 workers

  • Brighter Beginnings Day Nursery Limited, Oldham, OL9, failed to pay £4139.44 to 45 workers

  • Cheshire Central Limited, trading as Cheshire Central Car Valeting Centre, Stockport, SK5, failed to pay £3425.11 to 4 workers

  • Mr Ramon Sanchez, trading as Chester House Guest House, Cheshire West and Chester, CH2, failed to pay £3060.36 to 4 workers

  • Northcote Hotel Limited, Ribble Valley, BB6, failed to pay £2949.33 to 16 workers

  • Oldham Athletic (2004) Association Football Club Limited, Oldham, OL1, failed to pay £2812.38 to 6 workers

  • Crewe Alexandra Football Club Company,Limited(The), Cheshire East, CW2, failed to pay £2477.33 to 46 workers

  • V.A.S.S. Northwest Ltd - In Liquidation, trading as Andy’s VW Centre, St. Helens, WA10, failed to pay £2287.43 to 1 worker

  • Whoop Hall (2006) Limited, trading as The Whoop Hall Inn, Lancaster, LA6, failed to pay £1820.43 to 12 workers

  • Bankfield Residential Care Limited - Dissolved 18 September 2018, Bury, BL9, failed to pay £1785.09 to 40 workers

  • Kinetic Law Ltd, Blackburn with Darwen, BB1, failed to pay £912.4 to 1 worker

  • CJ RIDINGS LIMITED, company changed name from THE NURSERY (WISTASTON) LIMITED in March 2020, Cheshire East, CW2, failed to pay £869.15 to 9 workers

  • Carpet Kingdom Ltd, Blackburn with Darwen, BB1, failed to pay £693.57 to 2 workers

  • B Pharma Ltd, trading as Bispham Road Pharmacy, Sefton, PR9, failed to pay £698.51 to 1 worker

  • Mr Samuel T Farnell, Mr Gary Farnell, Mr Anthony P Farnell and Mr Gregory M Farnell, trading as Acorn Cleaning Services, Manchester, M1, failed to pay £737.14 to 1 worker

Almost half of employers named wrongly deducted pay from workers’ wages, including for uniforms and expenses, while 30% failed to pay workers for all the time they had worked, such as when they worked overtime, and 19% paid the incorrect apprenticeship rate.

Business Minister Paul Scully said: “Our minimum wage laws are there to ensure a fair day’s work gets a fair day’s pay. It is unacceptable for any company to come up short.

“All employers, including those on this list, need to pay workers properly.

“This Government will continue to protect workers’ rights vigilantly, and employers that short-change workers won’t get off lightly.”

John Lewis said it was "disappointed" to be on the list. Credit: PA

Shadow employment rights and protections secretary Andy McDonald said: “The Government isn’t doing nearly enough to crack down on companies who pay under the national minimum wage.

“Just six employers have been prosecuted for paying employees less than the minimum wage in the last six years despite more than 6,500 breaches having been found.

“Laws protecting workers aren’t worth the paper they are written on if they are not enforced, but weak employment rights and a lack of enforcement action leaves too many working people vulnerable to this exploitation.”