Hyatt hotel apologises after agency workers underpaid

The Hyatt Regency London, the Churchill has apologised after a “clerical error” saw agency workers underpaid to the tune of £11,000.

About 40 agency workers received less than colleagues employed directly by the hotel, despite having spent 12 weeks or more in the job, with the total underpayment across the group standing at approximately £11,300.

The '12 week rule’ states that agency workers are entitled to equal treatment in terms of pay and other entitlements if they remain in the same role for 12 weeks or more.

The owner of one of the agencies which supplied the staff said that it was “good news” that Hyatt had admitted the mistake.

“Many of these staff are in entry level roles being paid just above the minimum wage so it is really unfair of the hotel to deliberately under pay them in this way.

“There are about 40 staff affected with an under payment on the hourly rate of between 30p and 65p per hour.

“It is sadly an industry wide problem. Many hospitality businesses do not adhere to the legal requirements of the AWR (Agency Workers Regulations) when it comes to equal pay.”

Hyatt has apologised for the error, which affected agency staff working at the hotel between April 2018 and March 2019. It said that it was the result of “a clerical error” rather than being deliberate.

A spokesperson for Hyatt Regency London, the Churchill, said: “Over recent months, the management at Hyatt Regency London, The Churchill have been seeking to resolve an error involving a discrepancy in pay for contracted agency workers with ‘week 12 rights’.

“This was the result of a clerical error that has since been corrected, and we are in ongoing talks with our contractors to ensure that those affected colleagues are properly compensated for the mistake as quickly as possible.

“Hyatt’s purpose is to care for people so they can be their best. Our colleagues are the heart of our business, and the foundation to caring for people is creating a positive working environment with competitive wages and benefits. We sincerely apologise for the error, and have taken action in an effort to prevent this from happening in the future.”