Employers pay out £22m in illegal worker fines

According to figures obtained from the UK Border Agency (UKBA) under the Freedom of Information Act, the number of fines for employing illegal workers increased significantly in 2009.

The figures were obtained by giant precision, a web-based back office solutions provider.

The Government introduced a new system in March 2008 to try and reduce the number of illegal workers in the UK. This new system gave the UK Border Agency the power to issue civil penalties of £10,000 to employers for every illegal worker.

In 2009 the UK Border Agency imposed 2,210 civil penalties on employers of illegal workers, totalling £22.1m. This is almost double the number of civil penalties issued in 2008 when 1,164 civil penalties were issued, worth £11.2m in fines.

The year before the new civil penalty system was brought in, there were 38 prosecutions for employing illegal immigrants.

Matthew Brown, Managing Director, of giant precision commented:

"These figures show that identity checking is fast becoming one of the biggest compliance risks for employers and recruitment suppliers.

"With immigration an increasingly thorny political issue, the level of fines for employing illegal workers is likely to rise still further.”

Workplace Law’s Migrant workers factsheet advises:

• Employing someone who has no right to work in the UK (or to do the work an employer is offering) is a criminal offence.
• Employers have a statutory defence for employing an illegal worker by checking and copying certain original documentation belonging to the employee. What documents are required depends on the individual circumstances of each worker. Guidance for this is available on the Home Office website.