Are the minimum wage rules a mystery to you?
National Minimum Wage compliance in the UK is a complex subject area requiring specialist knowledge. Most payroll professionals in the UK need to have have a fair understanding of the basics of the rules and seek to increase their knowledge where possible.
A recent news article concerning a childcare provider highlights the devastating effect of getting this wrong.
Link to story: https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/dont-bring-your-kids-back-26152214
Employees at the nursery had been paying for their children's places at the childcare setting through a deduction on payroll. Following an inspection from HMRC it was found that their long term arrangements were a breach of minimum wage rules and therefore HMRC ruled that the employer had not been paying their staff the minimum wage.
This resulted in the business going into administration and closing immediately leaving employees without a job and parents with nowhere to take their children.
The employer had been using an accountant to provide their payroll service and were reliant on their advice as most would be.
Business owners and payroll professionals should take this as an important reminder of the consequences of getting it wrong.
Minimum wage compliance is a specialist subject in its own right and we should all be learning as much as possible and seeking specialist guidance where necessary.
How would you rate your minimum wage knowledge?
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I will be looking to run some sessions on the Payroll Forum Live events in the future to help improve people's understanding of the complexities of minimum wage.
If you would like to know when this is arranged, please sign up to our mailing list.