Illegal workers caught in Stokesley and Middlesbrough (From The Northern Echo)

Illegal workers caught in Stokesley and Middlesbrough

11:18am Wednesday 17th March 2010 in

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TWO Iranian men working illegally at a carwash in Stokesley, North Yorkshire, were caught during a nationwide crackdown by the UK Border Agency.

Immigration officials visited Shine, on the Terry Dicken industrial estate, in Station Road, on Monday as part of an intelligence led operation targeting illegal working.

Staff were questioned and their documents checked to determine whether they were entitled to work in the UK.

Two Iranian men, aged 20 and 25, were running the car wash at the time.

The 20-year-old was a failed asylum seeker and the 25-year-old an asylum seeker. Neither had permission to work.

Both had their employment terminated and the carwash was closed.

The employer was served with a Notice of Potential Liability (NOPL) in relation to the two illegal workers, and may face collective fines of up to £20,000.

It has 28 days to provide the UK Border Agency with evidence that the correct right-to-work checks were carried out or face a fine of up to £10,000 per illegal worker.

Officers from UKBA carried out similar checks on staff at Longbank Stores, Longbank Road, Ormesby, Middlesbrough, and discovered a 34-year-old asylum seeker from Sri Lanka, without permission to work in the UK.

The owner of the store was issued with a NOPL in relation to the worker, and could now face a fine of up to £10,000.

The operations coincide with a large-scaled advertising campaign warning bosses of the heavy fines if caught employing illegal foreign workers.

Jeremy Oppenheim, Regional Director for the UK Border Agency in the North East, Yorkshire and the Humber, said: “The UK Border Agency will not tolerate illegal working. It undercuts British wages and denies legitimate job hunters the chance to find work.

"As long as there are illegal jobs, the UK will attract illegal immigrants.

"That is why we won’t hesitate to take action against employers who chose to ignore the rules.

“There are simple checks that an employer can carry out to verify whether a foreign national has the right to work in the UK.

“We will also seek to remove those who have no right to be in this country.”

The enforcement operation is one of an average of 70 that take place across Yorkshire and the North-East in a month to tackle illegal working in the region.

Anyone who suspects that illegal workers are being employed at a business can contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 where anonymity can be assured.