MORE than 25 Scottish firms have been caught owing workers almost £60,000 after failing to pay the minimum wage in recent years, officials figures show.

Hundreds of workers have been underpaid by employers headquartered in Scotland, with £1.42 million in back pay identified across the UK.

Big names failing to pay their staff enough include Dundee FC, which owed four employees an average of £533.71.

Meanwhile, at the highest end of the scale in Scotland, Orkney and Shetland Charters – which organises diving trips – underpaid five workers by more than £20,000 in total.

Scotland Office minister Lord Duncan of Springbank said it “beggars belief that some employers think they can get away with underpaying staff and tricking them out of the wage to which they are legally entitled”.

He added: “That’s why we are naming, shaming and fining these companies. We won’t stop until every employee in Scotland is paid correctly and fairly for their labours.”

Officials said employers had underpaid workers by taking deductions from wages for uniforms, underpaying apprentices and failing to pay travel time.

Across the UK, 23,000 workers were identified as being underpaid – more than in any previous list – generating record fines of £1.95m.

UK-wide companies including Home Bargains and Card Factory, which also have significant presences in Scotland, were also named and shamed.

Bryan Sanderson, chairman of the Low Pay Commission, said it was crucial employers understand their responsibilities and workers know their rights.

He added: “It is therefore encouraging to see that HMRC has recovered unpaid wages for the largest number of workers yet in this round of naming and shaming.

“I’m confident that the UK Government will continue to pursue underpayment of the minimum wage vigorously.”

Funding for minimum wage enforcement has more than doubled since 2015, with the UK Government set to spend £26.3m in 2018/19. Employers who fall foul of the law have to pay back arrears of wages and face financial penalties.

A spokesman for Dundee FC said it discovered it had failed to pay four players the minimum wage in June 2016.

He said: “The underpayment was due to administrative shortcomings in our payroll process. The aggregate value of the underpayment was approximately £2,200.

“The players affected were advised, immediately, that they had been underpaid and that the arrears due to them would be settled in the next payroll run. Those under payments were made with their June 2016 salary.”

Orkney and Shetland Charters declined to comment.