London, Aug 19 (IANS) Employees at a factory in Britain may decide to take legal action after their wages were cut every time they went to the toilet.
Staff at the meat processing plant Dunbia, in Sawley, were told to clock off each time they went to the toilet. Money was deducted from their pay packets.
Unite, a union, said up to 86 workers may take official action.
Solicitors were reviewing the claims to determine how many employees have a case.
Daily Express quoted Unite regional officer Cathy Rudderforth as saying: ‘There are two issues – whether there is a breach of their contractual hours and whether there is a breach of the minimum wage.’
She described the cutting of wages as ‘outrageous’.
Rudderforth said: ‘Every time staff go to the toilet, it takes them 15 minutes because they have to clock out and go through all the hygiene checks.’
However, a Dunbia spokesperson said the allegations were baseless.
‘Hourly-paid employees are paid an additional sum of money each week to compensate for -having to clock in and out from the factory floor, and all hourly-paid staff have been personally informed on the rationale and -requirement for this procedure.’
