Can people who worked for us in the past for less than the minimum wage come back now and demand that we pay the extra?
Yes. The minimum wage was originally brought in (at £3.60 an hour for adults, and £3.00 an hour for 18-21 year olds) in April 1999. Subject to the exceptions for family or voluntary workers (see questions 4 and 5), anyone who has worked for you since then at less than the minimum wage can require you to pay the difference. There is an overall limit of six years on the amount of arrears that can be claimed, however you can’t make a claim more than six years after the arrears were due.
