Employers in the hairdressing and beauty sectors who pay their staff below the national minimum wage (NMW) are being targeted in a new campaign announced recently. This new campaign is the first step in expanding HMRC’s compliance activities using “smart data”.

As part of this campaign – the first of its kind – HMRC and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, supported by industry bodies, will work with hair and beauty businesses.

HMRC will provide employers with tailored tools and guidance to check if they are paying the correct amount, and put it right where they are not. Employers who take this opportunity to self-correct will not have to pay penalties, nor will they be ‘named and shamed’. If employers choose not to comply, HMRC will take action to ensure that employees are paid what they are owed.

A number of updates in relation to the NMW were also recently published:-

• 75 employers were named and shamed.
• Guidance, forms and case studies related to the NMW campaign have been published together with notification and disclosure forms.
• Details of common errors.