A number of high profile firms, including the likes of Sports Direct and Primark, have been forced to pay back millions of pounds to staff who received less than the National Minimum Wage.

The Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), which published the report, said the Government will “come down hard on businesses that break the rules”.

Its figures show that some 16,000 workers had not received the legal level of pay, amounting to more than £1.7 million in back pay.

The report also shows that offending companies were fined a total of £1.3 million.

Among the worst offenders, Primark was forced to repay around £230,000 after it deducted the costs of essential uniform from its workers’ salaries.

The current NMW is £7.50 per hour for workers over the age of 25.

The BEIS said the most common reason for underpaying workers were failing to pay staff for travelling between jobs, not paying overtime, and deducting money from staff to pay for essential equipment.

Business Minister Margot James said: “There is no excuse for not paying staff the wages they’re entitled to and the government will come down hard on businesses that break the rules.

“That’s why today we are naming hundreds of employers who have been short changing their workers; and to ensure there are consequences for their wallets as well as their reputation, we’ve levied millions in back pay and fines.”

Bryan Sanderson, Chairman of the Low Pay Commission, added: “The Low Pay Commission’s conversations with employers suggest that the risk of being named is encouraging businesses to focus on compliance.

“Further, it is good to see that HMRC continues to target large employers who have underpaid a large number of workers, as well as cases involving only a few workers, where workers are at risk of the most serious exploitation. It is imperative that the government keeps up the pressure on all employers who commit breaches of minimum wage law.”