Eastbourne and Hailsham businesses fined for employing illegal workers

The Government has published a list of employers penalised for hiring people who are not legally permitted to work in the UK.

The list is based on penalties issued between July 1 and September 30, 2024.

Those fined in Eastbourne and Hailsham, according to the Home Office, are:

Pearl and Pebbles Hotel, in Lascelles Terrace, Eastbourne, was fined £​15,000;

Dem Shish, a restaurant in South Street, Eastbourne, was fined £​40,000;

China Garden, a restaurant in Freshwater Square, Eastbourne, was fined £​80,000;

Abi Valeting, a car wash in Lower Dicker, Hailsham, was fined £​40,000.

The Home Office said employers have a duty to prevent illegal working in the UK by carrying out document checks on people before hiring them to ensure they are lawfully allowed to work.

If a business fails to do these checks, or does them incorrectly, and is found to have employed someone who doesn’t have the right to work in the UK, they can face a fine of up to £60,000 per illegal worker, according to the Home Office.

Employers found guilty of employing someone who they knew, or had ‘reasonable cause to believe’, did not have the right to work in the UK can be sent to jail for five years or fined an unlimited amount, the Home Office said.

You can find the full list here: www.gov.uk/government/publications/illegal-working-penalties-uk-report.