Section 234 — Employment Relations Act 2000: Circumstances in which officers, directors, or agents of company liable for minimum wages and holiday pay

234 Circumstances in which officers, directors, or agents of company liable for minimum wages and holiday pay (1) This section applies in any case where a Labour Inspector commences an action in the Authority against a company to recover any money payable by way of minimum wages or holiday pay to an employee of the company. (2) Where, in any case to which this section applies, the Labour Inspector establishes on the balance of probabilities that the amount claimed in the action by way of minimum wages or holiday pay or both is, if judgment is given for that amount, unlikely to be paid in full, whether because— (a) the company is in receivership or liquidation; or (b) there are reasonable grounds for believing that the company does not have sufficient assets to pay that amount in full,— the Authority may authorise the Labour Inspector to bring an action for the recovery of that amount against any officer, director, or agent of the company who has directed or authorised the default in payment of the minimum wages or holiday pay or both. (3) Where, in any action authorised under subsection (2) , it is proved that the officer, director, or agent of the company against whom the action is brought directed or authorised the default in payment of the minimum wages or holiday pay or both, that officer, director, or agent is with the company (and any other officer, director, or agent of the company who directed or authorised the default in payment) jointly and severally liable to pay the amounts recoverable in the action and judgment may be given accordingly. (4) In this section,— company has the meaning given to it by section 2(1) of the Receiverships Act 1993 holiday pay means any amount payable under the Holidays Act 2003 to an employee as pay for an annual holiday or public holiday holiday pay: this definition was amended, as from 1 April 2004, by section 91(2) Holidays Act 2003 (2003 No 129) by substituting the words “ Holidays Act 2003 ” for the words “ Holidays Act 1981 ” . minimum wages means minimum wages payable under the Minimum Wage Act 1983 . (5) Nothing in this section affects any other remedies for the recovery of wages or holiday pay or other money payable by a company to any employee of that company.