HMRC to investigate Next over minimum wage compliance
08 August 2022
Next recently changed payroll systems from an in-house system to Oracle, a US based group. During this rollout, thousands of payroll errors were made, resulting in some overpayments as well as underpayments.
Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will now be conducting an investigation to determine if any Next workers received less than the £9.50 National Living Wage for those aged 23 and over.
Next have indicated that they have implemented systems to check Oracle's output, reducing errors in the last payroll to 219 out of 43,000 workers.
The fashion retailer came under fire for the recent errors as inflation in the UK hits the highest it has for decades. Payroll errors caused by the system implementation resulted in benefits being withheld, and some staff indicating they could not afford to get to work.
HMRC has been increasing compliance activity in many areas recently and minimum age compliance is no exception. Those who fail to follow National Minimum Wage guidance can find themselves “named and shamed” by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).
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