By Eric King-
A director has been banned for hiring an illegal worker. Shui Ping Lee, 55, from Glasgow, also known as David Lee and David Shui Ping Lee, was the sole director of Goodwin Ichiban Limited (Goodwin). The company was incorporated in June 2011 and traded as Ichiban Noodle café and Ichiban Fusion from 184 Dumbarton Road, Glasgow.
In January 2017, Home Office Immigration Enforcement requested evidence of the document checks made in respect of an employee. As a result of that check, on 9 February 2017 Goodwin Ichiban was fined £15,000 for employing an illegal worker. However, the company was unable to pay the fine and was placed into liquidation in October 2017. Lee’s ban is for a period of three and a half years. Following the conclusion of the liquidation, the Insolvency Service investigated the company’s failure and on 31 May 2018, the Secretary of State accepted a disqualification undertaking from Shui Ping Lee after he admitted that the company had employed an illegal worker.
Company directors have a legal obligation to ensure they do not employ any illegal workers and are expected to check their particulars to confirm their legality in the country. Directors who fail to do this will be liable to disqualification and imposition of heavy fines. Most directors who hire illegal workers do it deliberately, to save costs by paying them lower wages than usual or lawfully allowed. It is exploitative in essence, although there may be some who consider themselves to be helping the unemployed worker in question.
Ichiban Noodle restaurant offers nutritious Japanese cuisine, and has established itself to be quite literally the ichiban restaurant for Japanese food in Glasgow.Commenting on the ban, Dave Elliot, lead investigator at the Insolvency Service, said: ”Illegal workers are not protected under employment law, and as well as cheating legitimate job seekers out of employment opportunities, these employers don’t ensure appropriate tax is paid, and as a result can undercut honest competitors. This should serve as a warning to other directors who may feel tempted to break the law. “Immigration laws make employers responsible for preventing illegal workers in the UK. To comply with the law, a company must check and be able to prove documents have been checked prior to recruitment showing that a person is entitled to work in the UK.
The Eye Of Media.Com contacted the restaurant for comment, but they declined to comment, saying they were too busy