Title edited by MNHQ at request of OP - Advice pls on labour exploitation law (a minor not being paid at work).

[Hedgehogscanclimbtrees]

This summer after GSCEs my son made a CV and went round our town's local cafes and restaurants asking for work. He was 16 at the time (17 now) and most places said no, he was too young. One place took him on, £5 per hour, mostly kitchen help, washing dishes, helping wherever help is needed, some waiting on tables. He has loved doing this, and he likes the boss ("he's like a friend") and the other members of staff. He has been putting in the hours at weekends and holidays, sometimes doing 10 hour shifts! To be clear this is something he has wanted to do and it helps his self-esteem. We have also kept an eye that his schoolwork does not suffer.
However I have found out that the boss is not paying his staff because of cashflow problems! Apparently payday was always "oh next week" etc. then it came out that the owner is opening another restaurant, so didn't have the cash to pay his (young) staff! My son has been paid some, but we added up his hours and he is owed over £1,000! My husband and I are tempted to go to the restaurant to (politely) tell the owner that he cannot withold our son's earnings but son (understandably) doesn't want us to wade in on his behalf. However he is in a vulnerable position, having been working cash in hand. And being so young (he has tried asking for his wages and keeps getting fobbed off). We told him to say that he cannot continue to work if he is not being paid but now they have simply removed him from the Whatsap group where the rotas were sent out. He went in today to ask why he'd been removed and it seems several people have been removed, apparently because the owner is trying to catch up on his debts to everyone by not rota-ing them... I asked who is serving then and my son didn't know, but he did reveal that Sundays have apparently been busy because sometimes it was just my son and the owner who was juggling cooking and front of house!
I have to say I think any business owner who does not pay his staff is probably going under. What recourse does my son have? Are there laws to protect people like him (and the other young people who have also not been paid)?
I would love to hear from any employment lawyers on here, or re 'Modern Slavery' laws!

This.

Your son isn't a slave as he can choose to leave at anytime. Your post is really quite offensive. Do you have any idea what a huge issue actual real modern slavery is in the uk? Please don't minimise the term by using it to describe your son's scenario.

If the owner is opening another restaurant, then he certainly does have the cash to pay your son the £1,000 owed. He has acted in bad faith and your son needs to stop working there.

In the meantime, I would suggest sending a WhatsApp/e-mail reminding the owner of the amount owed and asking when it will be paid. You could set a deadline of, say, a month to pay after which you will take this up with the small claims court and the tax authorities.

What this poster said. We have a 17 year old at my work who we had to do a separate risk assessment for. There are very strict rules about what shifts he can do and the breaks he needs in between shifts. Unfortunately the cash in hand situation is a common way of exploiting employees, especially in the hospitality industry. My husband works in that sector and has had more than one employee leave to take what they think is a lucrative cash in hand job only to find themselves with no safety net when it comes to sick pay, holidays or hr situations.

This happened to a school friend when we were 16. Her father had recently been released from jail (GBH). He rang the employer, and the conversation went like this:

”Do you like hospital food?”
”What?”
”Cos that’s what you’re gonna get, if you don’t pay Jane Bobbins right now”
”Who is this? Is this a threat? I’ll call the police!”
”You do that. You call the police and tell them you’ve been threatened by Bob Bobbins, and they’ll confirm it’s a genuine threat”

She got her money.

Pretty offensive to compare your son’s situation to modern slavery OP. There are right now people in Britain who are held in captivity, forced to work for free, often beaten, and in the case of women often raped. No, your son is not a slave. He’s a gullible child who took a shitty job, engaged in tax dodging, and trusted its dodgy owner, and you are the parent who failed to stop it.

If your son is owed £1k, pursue it in the small claims court.

Go to your local paper. Name and shame.

Well said Shol.

I wonder if OP is ever coming back. Let alone going to apologise for her tone-deaf thread title.

I am a restaurant owner. First of all I wish he worked for me.
it doesn’t matter that he got cash as he’s too young to pay tax and that would also be up to the owner so not a problem for your son. I would definitely go and have a strong word with the owner. How fevking dare he. This does happen in the catering industry and it really annoys me. Never let your son go even one week past his wage day. Threaten him with the tax people and he will don get his money. He now has experience so should get a job in lots more places. Wish he lived in Southampton.

it doesn’t matter that he got cash as he’s too young to pay tax
He's not too young to be paying NI.
And the only reason he won't pay tax is he won't be earning enough to meet the threshold.

If your young staff earn anything over £123 a week, you;d better make sure you're not falling foul of PAYE law @threatmatrix - HMRC would take a very dim view, & nobody wants a visit from the men in tricorn hats ...
www.gov.uk/child-employment/paying

The thing is my accountant deals with all that so I can assure you I have no need to ‘make sure’ of anything. Bloody hell do you jump on everyone’s comment or was I special.
he wasn’t old enough when he started. I misunderstood and thought he was 15 I beg for your forgiveness.

Jesus Christ people just looking for something to pick in. Modern day Slavery is mainly rampant in non western countries and when it does happen here it’s usually by foreigners. Western born people don’t really partake.

Sorry to offer you some well-meant advice yet again - but your accountant is not the responsible party here. If you are dodging the PAYE system & get caught out, "my accountant deals with that" is NOT a defence.

Are you just having a bad day, or are you generally this graceless? - do you need to have another go at me for trying to ensure you don't fall foul of HMRC?

Jesus Christ people just looking for something to pick in. Modern day Slavery is mainly rampant in non western countries and when it does happen here it’s usually by foreigners. Western born people don’t really partake.

Blimey.
You seem as well-versed on what modern slavery is & who the perpetrators are as you are about taxation.

Over 70% of prostitues in Amsterdam's red light district are coerced. They are generally european & UK women, & last I checked, Holland is a western country.

The UK itself is jampacked with private domestic workers who are promised fair employment but have their passports confiscated on arrival, either by their traffickers or the family who is employing them. Many of these workers are from non-western countries, but are exploited & abused by westerners -it is rife in big cities here.

Lol.
County lines.

Can I just clarify what is considered western born?

As an owner of number of food businesses over the years1-it does happen
2-you are responsible, not your accountant

Only reason you got answer from @KettrickenSmiled was because you were giving wrong info

Tbh not surprise with seeing what you spouted later🙄

Can I just clarify what is considered western born?

@Pothoswithasparkle you are VERY NAUGHTY.
Fancy a fag behind the bike sheds with me?

🚬 2 min and I am in

OP here. Apologies for the radio silence - after posting we had something of a family crisis so I am only now catching up with the replies. Thank you everyone for your views and advice.

First off I want to apologise for having offended anyone (everyone).
My intention had been to seek advice on labour exploitation laws.
I had heard of the modern slavery act which I knew covered very much worse situations (involving coercion, sexual abuse etc) but which I (mistakenly) thought might also, at its fringes, include financial exploitation (eg. non-payment) of minors in the workplace.
I have tried to change the title but cannot find a way to do so, so have used the ‘report’ button to ask if I can change the title.
I did not mean in any way to compare my son’s treatment to the slave trade or indeed to those cases which sit indisputably in the ‘modern slavery’ category.
I just knew that my son was being exploited at work and, as the last line of my post said, was hoping for advice.
I am so sorry for having caused offense.

As for the advice given, thank you so much to those who have shared their experiences and thoughts.
A lot of wisdom and good advice – thank you!

Darling. I pay for all that to be done having four eateries doesn’t give me much time. But thanks for your input.

Before you make something of it. I meant born in a Western country not some country living 300 years behind.

Why are you trying to insinuate I’m dodgeing tax?????? Jesus why are you so obsessed with me. Go pick on someone else. I’ve paid the higher rate of tax for over 30 years, you should now????

There should be extra twat rate

Why are you trying to insinuate I’m dodgeing tax?????? Jesus why are you so obsessed with me. Go pick on someone else. I’ve paid the higher rate of tax for over 30 years, you should now????

Are you feeling quite well @threatmatrix ?
Nobody's mentioned your own earnings.
You claimed to be employing 17 year old staff, but were under the erroneous impression that you didn't need to put their wages through PAYE.

I helpfully pointed that out, & rarther than being happy that someone was giving you a tip in your own interests, you've responded with quite unaccountable rage.

Oh this is irresistible.

Living 300 years behind WHAT, @threatmatrix?

& OK, you've got me - I wasn't obsessed with you before that comment, but you've made yourself like a flame to my moth now.