A LOCAL employer in Fermanagh has been fined over £2,000 for failing to pay the national living and minimum wage to their staff.
The names of 239 employers found to have underpaid 22,400 UK workers by a total of £1.44m were published by the government last week, including 11 from Northern Ireland.
Among the employers named on the list by HMRC include The Tilery Limited, trading as The Tilery Nursing Home in Enniskillen, which failed to pay £2,423.50 to 33 workers with of arrears £73.44 each.
Also on the list was Oliver Kerr, trading as Origin Fresh in Carrickmore, who failed to pay £10,317.95 to three workers, leading to average arrears of £3,439.32 per worker.
In all, more than £38,000 was owed to 222 employees across the North.
The minimum wage is £4.20 per hour for those aged under 18, rising to £7.83 for those over 25.
A total of 239 firms in the UK have been identified as underpaying staff and have been ordered to pay almost £3.5 million in back-pay and fines.
Commenting on the figures, NI Secretary of State Karen Bradley said: “The Government is delivering the National Living and Minimum Wage for every worker in Northern Ireland, ensuring everyone gets the wage to which they are entitled.
“It is only right that thanks to government investigations, 222 people in Northern Ireland will get the back pay they deserve,” she added.
Amongst the top five reasons identified for underpayment was the underpayment of apprentices and the deduction from wages for costs such as uniforms.
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