Nine firms, from Craigavon, Markethill, Magheralin, Omagh, Magherafelt, Newtownards, Larne and Blackwatertown, named by HMRC for failing to pay staff minimum wage

There were two in the Craigavon area, one in Markethill also Magheralin, Omagh, Magherafelt, Newtownards, Larne and Blackwatertown.

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They range from big firms such as Avondale Foods in Craigavon where 149 workers were affected and Victor Foster Poultry Services Limited, Markethill where 284 workers were affected and smaller firms such as Edenmore Golf and Country Club where 11 workers were affected.

A total of 542 workers were affected by this and the amount, calculated by HMRC, that these firms failed to pay totalled £75,657.02.

Across the UK more than 200 companies were named by the HMRC for failing to pay their lowest paid staff the minimum wage.

Here are those listed for failing to pay workers the minimum wage:

• Victor Foster Poultry Services Limited, Markethill, BT60, failed to pay £33,045.17 to 284 workers.
• Avondale Foods (Craigavon) Limited, Craigavon, BT66, failed to pay £9,007.35 to 149 workers.
• O’Connor’s Restaurant Ltd, trading as O’Connor’s Bar and Restaurant, Omagh, BT78, failed to pay £2,413.89 to 1 worker.
• Hatch Brothers Limited, trading as Genesis Crafty (now under new ownership), Magherafelt, BT45, failed to pay £4,439.53 to 7 workers.
• WGAB Limited, trading as Excel Clothing, Newtownards, BT23, failed to pay £2,369.12 to 18 workers.
• Curran Court Hotel 2017 Limited, Larne, BT40, failed to pay £2,003.07 to 63 workers.
• Edenmore Golf & Country Club Ltd, Magheralin, BT67, failed to pay £506.52 to 11 workers.
• Reahs Restaurant Ltd, trading as The Portmor, Blackwatertown, BT71, failed to pay £3,292 to 8 workers.
• 727 Your Store Limited, Craigavon, BT62, failed to pay £580.37 to 1 worker.

In a statement from one firm Hatch Bros, trading as Genesis Bakery, it said it ‘has never paid members of staff below the national minimum wage’.

The statement said: “McErlain's bakery, trading as Genesis Crafty, went into administration in 2018 and this is the company to which the Department of Business and Trade is referring in its recent press release, as is clear from the dates listed.

"HMRC conducted an investigation into underpayments made in the years up to the period of administration in August 2018 but did not conclude their investigation until after administration, in 2019.

"Hatch Bros cooperated fully with HMRC, not only to identify the historical underpayments but also to implement new systems which would prevent any such underpayments in future. Hatch Bros also stepped in to pay the historical company fines and full compensation to all of the employees who had been impacted, including those who no longer even worked for the bakery. The case officer at the time described Hatch's actions as exemplary.

"Hatch Bros subsequently changed the trading name of the company from Genesis Crafty to Genesis Bakery,” said the statement.

"Genesis Bakery is in fact currently one of the highest paying food manufacturers in Northern Ireland. Our base hourly rate is £11, regardless of age and is well above the minimum wage amount of £5.28 for under 18s and £10.42 for over 23s." Said Gwynneth Cockcroft, interim CEO "It is obviously extremely disappointing that the company should be named in this list when we quite clearly have done nothing wrong and everything right in this regard, and are merely a victim of the reporting system."

Genesis Bakery has won a series of awards in recent years for innovation and product development and supplies prestigious customers across the globe. The company employs more than 300 people in full and part-time roles at its base in Magherafelt.