St Helens “named and shamed” by government

St Helens is one of 179 employers “named and shamed” by the government for underpaying minimum wage workers.

A report by the Liverpool Echo revealed that St Helens had failed to pay £5,536.92 to 117 workers.

A club spokesman said: “The Club is committed to paying the national minimum wage, and operates a policy of paying a premium over and above the national minimum wage.

“However, a limited number of staff were identified as having been underpaid the national minimum wage. This was unintentional, and the Club has unreservedly apologised to affected staff.

“Fortunately these instances of underpayment were isolated in nature, and the Club has worked with HMRC to resolve the underpayments. All affected staff have been reimbursed.

“The Club has reviewed its payroll systems to ensure that the strict requirements for calculating compliance with the national minimum wage regulations are observed.”

Other sports clubs, including Stoke City and Birmingham City football clubs and London Irish rugby union club, were also named on the list.

In total, £1.1m was owed to 9,200 workers across the 179 employers, which also included major retailers, hotels, cafes and restaurants.

The list is published by the government’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.