Clothing and jewellery chain Monsoon Accessorize has been named as the worst British company for paying their staff the new minimum wage.
The British company was among 115 companies that had failed to pay their staff almost £389,000 in wages between them.
Monsoon neglected to pay 1,438 workers £104,508 – making it the worst offender by far on the newly released list.
The company claimed it had taken measures to address the shortfall by offering staff a discount on their clothing and jewellery, but this offer was deducted from workers’ wages – dropping them below the legal threshold.
Monsoon, which was among the first British companies to sign up to the Ethical Trading Initiative to protect workers’ rights, claimed when the information came to light they changed their practises and raised staff wages accordingly. Wages in the retailer’s British stores were raised to £8.20 an hour last month.
The other companies named in the report released by HM Revenue and Customs include Tyne & Wear Riding for the Disabled Association (£27,000 to six workers), Project Security in Doncaster (£23,000 to 18 workers) and Carl Keith Salons, Prescot, Merseyside, (£20,000 to five workers).
From 1 October the NMW (new minimum wage) rose to £6.70 an hour for workers aged over 21.
Despite the changes, trade union body leader Frances O’Grady said the named companies were “only the tip of the iceberg. Many more employers are getting away with illegal underpayment."
The outstanding money has already been repaid, and the firms will be fined after HM Revenue and Customs conclude their investigations.
Additional reporting by Press Association
