The company behind two Aberdeen hotels has been named and shamed by the UK Government for failing to pay their lowest paid staff the minimum wage.
Ewart Aberdeen Properties Limited, previously Dominvs Project Company, and trading as Crowne Plaza & Holiday Inn Express Aberdeen Airport, failed to pay £23,868.72 to 76 workers.
The company was one of 208 UK employers found to have shortchanged their workers by £1.2 million in a breach of national minimum wage law, leaving around 12,000 workers out of pocket.
The businesses have since had to pay back what they owe to staff and also face financial penalties of up to 200% of what was owed.
The investigations by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs concluded between 2014 and 2019.
The firm issued a statement clarifying the underpayment was due to the action of previous owners.
It said: “At Crowne Plaza Aberdeen Airport and Holiday Inn Express Aberdeen Airport, our team are key to our success and we regularly review our rates of pay for all team members to ensure we attract and retain a diverse and skilled workforce and comply with the national minimum wage (NMW) legislation.
“Since Ewart Aberdeen SARL (the new owners) acquired Crowne Plaza Aberdeen Airport and Holiday Inn Express Aberdeen Airport on 1 April 2019, we have ensured that all staff are paid the NMW or higher, and have actively taken steps to ensure compliance with the legislation.
“The underpayment breach was made by the previous owners and was rectified before the new owners acquired the two hotels. The affected employees received arrears payments in full, were moved to the correct rate of pay, and the matter was officially closed with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) before the new owners acquired the hotels.
“The new owners are entirely unrelated to the previous owners and have no prior or ongoing dealings. The new owners had no involvement or control over the previous owners’ underpayment breach. These circumstances have been clearly communicated in detail in representations to HMRC on 2 April 2019 and 30 August 2021.”
Liberty Child Care (Elgin), trading as Liberty Kids, Moray, was also named for failing to pay £4,543.49 to one worker.
However, a spokeswoman for the business said they were ‘incensed’ to be named.
She said: “We are beyond incensed that Liberty Kids have been included in the list published today.
“Our wages payments are outsourced, and over four years ago, following a visit by HMRC, we were notified that our then accountant had not made adjustments for an employee.
“Our previous accountants accepted full liability for this error and the individual was paid immediately when this error was brought to our attention.
“HMRC acknowledged at the time that Liberty Kids we were not at fault and our previous accountant took responsibility for the incurred fines.
“We are bitterly disappointed that we have been included on this list through no fault of our own.”
Companies named range from multinational businesses and large high street names to SMEs and sole traders.
House of Fraser failed to pay over £16,000 to 354 workers, Schuh failed to pay £807 to 39 staff and Waterstones failed to pay nearly £8,700 to 58 staff.
Other high-profile offenders include outsourcing giant Mitie and sandwich-maker Greencore.
‘No excuse’ for failure to pay staff
Malcolm Offord UK government minister for Scotland said: “The national minimum wage applies across the whole of the UK to make sure employees are paid fairly for hard work.
“Although not all minimum wage underpayments are deliberate, there’s no excuse for failing to uphold workers’ rights.
“I’m glad Scotland’s short-changed employees have now been paid back what they were owed.”
The named and shamed employers underpaid workers in a number of ways, including not increasing national minimum wage in line with government rises and paying the wrong rate for the age of the employee.
The companies also charged deductions which reduced pay below the legal level or made employees endure unpaid work time to undertake training, trial shifts or travel.
Low Pay Commission chairman Bryan Sanderson said: “The minimum wage is a success story welcomed by employees and employers alike, but it only works if everyone without exception obeys the law.
“We hope this latest naming round can continue to raise awareness of the most common mistakes businesses make and help protect low-paid workers from unfair treatment.”
The Press and Journal revealed in 2014 that Dominvs was building the hotels nearby the airport – creating nearly 200 new jobs – in a £30million investment with both opening their doors in 2015.
The hotels were launched as franchise deals with Dominvs Group and InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), which owns the Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn brands.
Trades Union Congress general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “Every worker deserves fair pay for their work.
“There’s no excuse for not paying the minimum wage. Firms who cheat staff out of their hard-earned money deserve to be named and shamed.
“We also need to see prosecutions and higher fines for the most serious offenders, especially those who deliberately flout the law. Minimum wage underpayment is still far too common in Britain.”