Derby-based recruiter Workchain owners and directors Phil Tong and Adam Hinkley were found to have encouraged five senior staff at the company to opt workers out of the scheme so the agency could avoid making pension payments on their behalf.

Financial controller Hannah Armson, HR and compliance officer Lisa Neal and branch managers Martin West, Robert Tomlinson and Andrew Thorpe were found to have worked together to opt workers out of workplace pension scheme NEST.

In a statement, released last week, the Pensions Regulator revealed that at Derby Crown Court last week, Judge Shant ordered Workchain (formerly known as Smart Recruitment UK Ltd) to pay a £200k fine and £60,930 costs. 

Tong and Hinkley were each given a four-month prison sentence suspended for two years, and ordered to complete 200 hours of community service and to pay £11,250 costs.

Armson was given a two-month prison sentence suspended for two years, a five-month overnight curfew and was ordered to pay £1.5k costs. 

Neal was given a two-month prison sentence suspended for two years and was ordered to do 200 hours of community service and to pay £1.5k costs. 

West, Tomlinson and Thorpe were each given a two-year community order, and ordered to do 150 hours of community service and to pay £500 costs.

When NEST became suspicious about a number of the calls from Workchain, The Pensions Regulator (TPR) looked into recordings of conversations – capturing the moments the defendants secured the NEST ID numbers of multiple workers.

Workchain, its directors and five senior staff all pleaded guilty to computer misuse offences after TPR announced plans to prosecute them back in April.

Recruiter approached Workchain for comment but there was no response by deadline.

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