The UK government has named 658 employers for failing to meet National Minimum Wage rules, with more than 27,000 workers receiving around £4 million in back pay after enforcement action. B&Q and Five Guys are among the best-known companies on the list, while penalties imposed on employers total about £7 million.
The action covers businesses across retail, restaurants, healthcare, social care, childcare and hospitality. For workers, the key point is that a minimum-wage breach does not always mean the hourly rate printed on a contract was obviously too low. Payroll calculations, deductions, allowances and unpaid working time can also reduce effective pay below the legal minimum.
B&Q records the largest underpayment
B&Q Ltd sits at the top of the list, with £456,934.72 involving 4,530 workers.
The DIY retailer said the shortfalls were unintentional and related to calculations involving geographical allowances paid in addition to minimum hourly rates. B&Q said affected employees were paid in full in July 2025.
Elysium Healthcare Holdings 3 Ltd was listed next, with £330,048.81 involving 1,095 workers.
Top 10 employers by unpaid wages
- B&Q Ltd: £456,934.72 — 4,530 workers
- Elysium Healthcare Holdings 3 Ltd: £330,048.81 — 1,095 workers
- St George’s, Epsom and St Helier Hospital Group: £123,331.97 — 75 workers
- Support Staff Services Limited: £119,715.13 — 323 workers
- Forest Holidays Ltd: £100,308.68 — 598 workers
- St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust: £77,498.91 — 55 workers
- Lanes Group Limited: £67,893.34 — 297 workers
- UK Care Team Ltd: £67,082.76 — 99 workers
- Five Guys JV Limited: £54,642.47 — 3,699 workers
- Merlin Cinemas Limited: £50,198.75 — 181 workers
Why Five Guys was named
Five Guys JV Limited was listed as having underpaid 3,699 workers by £54,642.47.
The company said an HMRC review identified technical differences in how payroll regulations had been applied. Five Guys said it worked with HMRC and made the required payments to affected current and former employees.
The case highlights an important distinction: appearing on the government list does not necessarily mean an employer deliberately set wages below the legal minimum. Salary-sacrifice arrangements, deductions, allowances or incorrect treatment of working time can also lead to a breach.
Tesco, Serco and Premier Inn owner Whitbread also named
Serco Limited was listed for £36,303.02 involving 374 workers, with the company attributing the issue to a technical salary-sacrifice error on one contract.
Whitbread, the owner of Premier Inn, was reported to have underpaid 342 employees by about £4,193 due to an administrative error.
Tesco Stores Limited also appears on the wider list, with an underpayment of £227.84 involving one worker. The figures show that cases range from hundreds of thousands of pounds affecting thousands of employees to much smaller individual breaches.
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NHS organisations and Scottish employers are included
St George’s, Epsom and St Helier Hospital Group and St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust were both named. The organisations have said the cases related to technical salary-sacrifice compliance rather than employees receiving gross salaries below the minimum wage.
There is also a strong Scottish angle. Fifty Scottish businesses were reported on the UK-wide list, affecting nearly 700 workers. Collin Care Ltd in Glasgow had the largest Scottish underpayment highlighted, at more than £28,000 involving 77 workers.
What is the UK minimum wage in 2026?
From April 2026, the statutory minimum rates are £12.71 an hour for workers aged 21 and over, £10.85 for those aged 18 to 20, and £8 for workers under 18 and qualifying apprentices.
Workers and employers can check current rates and eligibility through the government’s National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage guidance.
How workers can check if they were underpaid
Employees should compare payslips with the hours they actually worked. Mandatory meetings, handovers, training, changing time and certain job-related deductions can affect minimum-wage calculations.
Workers who think their pay may be wrong should keep shift records, payslips and details of deductions. They can use government guidance or contact Acas for advice.
The enforcement comes as major companies continue to review staffing and operating costs. Recent examples include Uber’s 2026 restructuring and job cuts and HCA Healthcare’s layoffs amid rising costs.
The latest naming round is especially significant because it follows the launch of the Fair Work Agency in April 2026. The government has indicated that employer naming rounds will be published more regularly, increasing both financial and reputational pressure on businesses to get payroll compliance right.
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