High Class Recruitment has had its gangmasters licence revoked after the Gangmasters Licensing Authority (GLA) was informed that the manager, Paul Sangster, had left the Welling-based company.
The licence was formally revoked after a number of unsuccessful attempts to contact the remaining director to check if the business was still trading.
An earlier inspection in September found that no records were available to confirm the hours worked and the gangmaster could not produce timesheets when requested. The GLA had demanded that this be rectified immediately and proof be provided.
It was also found that holiday pay had not been paid as no worker had ever requested a day off.
No appeal was made against the revocation.
The GLA cannot allow a licence to be held when it is clear that no person working for the company is permitted to act as a gangmaster.
If the business is found to be operating without a licence in the GLA-regulated sectors, it could face prosecution, with penalties of up to 10 years' imprisonment and an unlimited fine.
GLA chairman Paul Whitehouse said: “If nobody has responsibility for the workers, there is a significant risk to their safety and welfare. The protection we provide to workers relies on named individuals facing the consequences if they step out of line.”
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