Recently, The UK government revealed that ELC’s Estée Lauder Cosmetics Limited, based in Westminster, had neglected to pay £894,980.43 to 5,933 workers.
ELC, a well-known beauty conglomerate, attributed the oversight to a “misinterpreted guidance” and emphasized that all affected employees had been fully reimbursed.
The investigations conducted by HM Revenue & Customs concluded between 2015 and 2023, as stated in a release. According to Cosmetics Business, Estee Lauder said they had never intentionally paid its employees less than the minimum wage. They explained that in 2019, like many other companies, ELC became aware of the misinterpretation of guidance from HM Revenue & Customs regarding payment for voluntary staff purchases and staff clothing requirements. ELC promptly informed and reimbursed all affected employees while updating their procedures.
The UK’s Department for Business and Trade confirmed that the businesses in question had repaid their owed amounts to their staff. It also highlighted that these companies faced financial penalties of up to 200% of their underpayment, without specifying the specific amounts paid by each company.
The national minimum wage in the UK currently stands at £10.42 for individuals aged 21 and over, with a planned increase of 9.8% to £11.44 per hour on April 1st of the current year.
