Prosecution urged over underpaid farm workers - Matthew Welch Employment Law Solicitor comments on this matter

According to figures obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, over £100,000 has been recovered from Welsh agriculture employers to reimburse farmers who have been underpaid over the past six years.

Plaid Cymru AM, Leanne Wood says she was shocked when she discovered that no one had been prosecuted for failing to pay the agricultural workers their minimum wage. She also said she would be urging the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to prosecute employers that are guilty of underpaying farm workers in the future.

The farming industry has its own unique minimum wage levels set by the government. A Grade 1 worker, working a full week should be paid no less than £223.86 and a Grade 6 worker should be paid no less than £329.55 per week.

Leanne Wood claims underpaying employers should be prosecuted whether operating in agriculture or in any other industry. She says, “while I’m delighted that money is being recovered when people have been underpaid, I do think that UK Government departments should be prosecuting offenders who fail to pay the minimum wage, whether they operate in agriculture or any other industries.”

Matthew Welch, an employment law specialist at Colchester Solicitors Fisher Jones Greenwood LLP, says: “Non agriculture employers are required to pay the national minimum wage. Failure to pay the minimum wage lays employers open not only to claims for non payment of wages from employees but also to being prosecuted by the state. For the agriculture sector enforcement will be taken by the agricultural wages inspector and for other sectors the HMRC.”

Contact Matthew Welch on 01206 835230 for further information and advice.