Prevention is better than cure: Is your business ready for a visit from the UK Border Agency?

Businesses in Essex are being urged to check they can prove all employees have the right to work in the UK in order to avoid breaking the law and being hit with a fine of up to £10k plus potential negative publicity.

A free seminar has been organised by Essex law firm Birkett Long to remind all employers of their responsibility to be able to provide proof, on request, to the UK Border Agency (UKBA) of all employees’ right to work, and to provide simple hints and tips to help ensure all businesses in the county remain on the right side of the law.

Paralegal Ashlee Campbell, who will be presenting at the seminar in Chelmsford on 28 June, stressed that illegal working was an issue which can put all types of businesses at risk and should not be ignored.

“Many employers think the subject of illegal workers is not relevant to them because they don’t employ anyone who is not British or from the European Union,” said Ashlee. “But they don’t realise that it’s up to them to be able prove this. We have seen clients who have unwittingly fallen foul of the law by unknowingly employing illegal workers or failing to be able to produce the correct paper work to prove they are working within the law.

She added: “Visits by the UKBA can highlight issues where no one realised there was even a problem, for example people who came to the UK as children and who have lived and worked here for over 25 years, presuming they were classed as a British national.

“The fines involved are substantial, with a penalty of up to £10,000 for each illegal worker. For a small business this can easily be enough to cause them to go bankrupt. It’s up to the business to challenge the fine through county court proceedings, which also comes at a cost.”

The UKBA carries out spot checks on all types of businesses as well as acting on information received. The latest statistics available from the UKBA show that in November 2010 alone businesses in East of England and the Midlands were fined in excess of £1 million.

“Prevention is better than cure,” explained Ashlee. “We encourage all businesses who are advertising a position to make it common practice to check all documents before even making an offer of employment.

“Employers who have not hired anyone outside of the EU may not be familiar with documents other than a British passport. Our seminar will give a simple overview of employers’ responsibilities and explain what to check for and what they need to have on file for all current and prospective employers. We will also explain how to challenge a fine if a problem does occur.”

The most famous example of someone unwittingly being caught by the UKBA was Attorney General Baroness Scotland, who hit the headlines in 2009 for being fined £5,000 after employing a housekeeper who was not legally allowed to work in the UK. As the government's chief legal adviser, Baroness Scotland had helped to take the legislation on employing illegal workers through Parliament when she was a Home Office minister. But despite taking steps to ensure the employee’s right to work had not kept a copy of documents, as required by law.

“It is not only high profile figures who can be hit by negative publicity for unknowingly breaking the law,” added Ashlee. “The UKBA publishes the names of employers it has fined on its website and sometimes releases the news to the media. This means employers have found their name in the papers before they have even had a chance to challenge the fine, which is not good publicity for the business.”

Employers looking for more information can attend the free seminar, held by Birkett Long, at The Conservatory, The Atlantic Hotel, Chelmsford on 28 June between 8am and 10am. To register book online here, contact 01245 453852 or email seminar@birkettlong.co.uk