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<p>The government is committed to increasing compliance with minimum wage legislation
and effective enforcement of it. Everyone who is entitled to the minimum wage should
receive it. Employers who pay workers less than the minimum wage not only have to
pay back arrears of wages at current minimum wage rates but also face financial penalties
of up to £20,000 per underpaid worker.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>There are currently
232 staff working in National Minimum Wage for HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), up
from 171 at the start of 2014/15. The government takes the enforcement of National
Minimum Wage very seriously and has increased funding from £8m in 2013/14 to £13.2m
in 2015/16.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Civil penalties were introduced on 6 April
2009 for employers who are found to have underpaid their workers. The following table
provides a breakdown of penalties issued by year:</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Year</p></td><td><p>Penalties
issued</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2009-10</p></td><td><p>£111,183</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2010-11</p></td><td><p>£520,568</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2011-12</p></td><td><p>£766,807</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2012-13</p></td><td><p>£776,517</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2013-14</p></td><td><p>£815,269</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2014-15</p></td><td><p>£934,660</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The vast majority of employers pay penalties upon being issued
with a Notice of Underpayment. Where they do not, HMRC will seek to recover through
the civil recovery route.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>In the period 2009/10 –2014/15,
HMRC issued penalties totalling nearly £4m, of which less than 2% is currently uncollected
and is being actively pursued through civil recovery processes.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
</p><p>HMRC do not hold data in a format to be able to provide information on unpaid
arrears for the time range specified. It is not possible to identify a specific timescale
of when a penalty was issued in relation to the time debt management processes took
place.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
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