A Dundee restaurant worker says she was left without money for her daughter at Christmas after her Broughty Ferry employer failed to pay up.
Keri Lawrence started working at the Beach Hut in October and says she has still not been paid.
The lack of funds left her having to take emergency night work to get through the festive period.
Branding the restaurant an “absolute joke of a place”, Keri, a single parent, said she and several other members of staff had been working hard and pulling double shifts since they were taken on.
She claimed owner Catherine Rae had effectively taken food from her child’s mouth.
“One of the other staff members is owed at least £1,000 for all her work,” she said.“I’m a single parent and I needed that money. My daughter only turned one on December 30.”
She added: “I had to get a night job which I couldn’t keep up because of my daughter just to make it through Christmas.
“I’d like to recover the money but I doubt I ever will. I’m sorry I ever worked for her.”
Keri claimed the owners told her the non-payment was down to the accountant.
She said no business could expect their staff to work for nothing.
“With no wages in the bank I’m definitely going to take this further,” Keri said.
Meanwhile, tradesmen who helped get the restaurant up and running estimate the total amount of money they are due for the work could be as much as £15,000.
Mike McGregor is set to take Catherine Rae to small claims court to recover his money.
He said: “It’s deplorable that she can get away with this, it’s time people knew what sort of business she’s running.We’re tradesmen, we work and get paid, and when that system breaks down it is a real problem.
“It’s completely unfair that she’s open for trading and we’re stuck here still having not been paid.We’ve never had a penny, and as far as I can tell nobody has been paid.”
Tradesman George Fisher added: “I’m lucky I only fitted the gas, so she only owes me a few hundred.Some of these guys are owed thousands and some of the staff had no money for Christmas.”
Since opening in August the esplanade outlet had been dogged by criticism of its prices and waiting times, as well as inconsistent opening times.
Despite repeated attempts by The Courier to speak to Catherine Rae, she declined to respond to the allegations.