Another South Hams company has been “named and shamed” for not paying employees the minimum wage, but they insist they “fell foul of a technicality”.

Thurlestone Hotel underpaid four members of staff by £2,028 between October 17, 2013, and May 4, 2016.

Thurlestone Estates Limited, which runs the Thurlestone Hotel and Mullion Cove Hotel in Cornwall, made a £3.2m gross profit, according to its last published annual accounts, to October 31, 2016.

Matthew Grose, Thurlestone Hotel’s managing director, said: “Thurlestone Hotel would like to make it quite clear that nobody has been paid less than the National Minimum Wage at any point. The business fell foul of a technicality that even our accountants were unaware of which involved services to our live in staff.

“There were two breaches as follows.

“1. Staff wanting to take advantage of meals while off duty had the money taken from their pay packet as they had requested. HMRC informed us that we should have paid them their wages and then asked them to pay the money back to us.

“2. Staff being provided with live in accommodation had their damage deposit taken from their first pay packet. Again, they should have been paid and then paid the money back to us. Indeed the members of staff got their deposit returned in full when they left.

“We feel strongly that while we got things wrong to the letter of the law that HMRC did not look at this with any sympathy or common sense. At no point was anybody technically paid less than the NMW but because of the deductions, which staff had agreed to, their final weekly total appeared to fall below NMW.

“This applied to a total of four members of staff from a workforce of over 100 in the height of the season.

“We payed all staff back the monies and they then payed us back, which does serve to beg the question of whether it was worth the expense of HMRC investigating us.”

Commenting on this 14th round of naming and shaming, TUC South West Regional Secretary, Nigel Costley said: “Yet again, we’re seeing many employers, including household names, failing to pay their staff properly. The minimum wage has been around for nearly 20 years – there’s absolutely no excuse for not paying it.

“Employers who cheat their staff out of the minimum wage deserve to be named and shamed. And they will rightly face hefty financial penalties.

“Minimum wage dodgers must have nowhere to hide.”

As well as recovering backpay for 9,200 workers, the Government also fined the employers a total of £1.3 million in penalties for breaking national minimum wage laws. The most prolific offending sectors in this round were retailers, hospitality businesses and hairdressers.

It comes ahead of the next rate rise on 1 April, when the National Living Wage will go up from £7.50 to £7.83 per hour.

Later this month the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy will launch a campaign to raise awareness of the new rates and encourage workers to speak to their employer if they think they are being underpaid.

Business Minister Andrew Griffiths said: "The world of work is changing and we have set out our plans to give millions of workers enhanced rights to ensure everyone is paid and treated fairly in the workplace.

"There are no excuses for short-changing workers. This is an absolute red line for this government and employers who cross it will get caught - not only are they forced to pay back every penny but they are also fined up to 200 per cent of wages owed.

"Today’s naming round serves as a sharp reminder to employers to get their house in order ahead of minimum wage rate rises on April 1."

Bryan Sanderson, chairman of the Low Pay Commission, said: "As the National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage rates rise on April 1, it is vital that workers understand their rights, and employers their obligations.

"The Low Pay Commission is pleased to see the Government maintaining the momentum of its minimum wage enforcement.

"The recent announcement that all workers will have a right to payslips stating the hours they have worked – an idea originally proposed by the LPC – is a positive step."