Huntingdon business helps catch illegal workers

Wednesday, 24th February 2010

Three illegal immigrants working at a Huntingdon firm have been caught by our officers.

VIP Polymers did just what any employer should do when there are concerns about staff members' immigration status, they contacted us.

The company deserves credit for its responsible behaviour Chris Evans, chief immigration officer, Cambridgeshire and Northants Our officers visited VIP Polymers in Windover Road on Thursday 18 February and immigration checks revealed that three members of staff were in the UK without permission, all having overstayed their visas.

Two of the men, a 33-year-old from Malawi and a 39-year-old from Ghana, were detained pending their removal from the UK. The Ghanaian was removed from the UK on Saturday 20 February and the Malawian was due to be removed.The third man, a 33-year-old from Nigeria, has been charged with identity card offences and remanded in custody. He is due to appear at Huntingdon Crown Court.

The business will not face a civil penalty, having co-operated fully with our investigation.Chief immigration officer Chris Evans, from the local immigration team for Cambridgeshire and Northants, said:'VIP Polymers did just what any employer should do when there are concerns about staff members' immigration status, they contacted us. The company deserves credit for its responsible behaviour.

'Employing illegal foreign labour is unfair on honest employers who recruit staff with the right to work in the UK and who pay them a proper salary. Businesses that do it quite deliberately face severe financial

Keywords: business, businesses, illegal workers, illegal work, immigration, fines, home office, overstayer, employment, employing, employee, employer