Protests continue outside The Bell Hotel in Clare, near Haverhill and Sudbury, due to ‘thousands of pounds’ in unpaid wages

A second protest over thousands of pounds worth of unpaid wages has been held outside a hotel.

Saturday’s protest outside The Bell Hotel in Market Hill, Clare - half way between Haverhill and Sudbury - came three weeks after the first one - and the message from placard-waving campaigners remains the same ‘kitchen staff, bar staff, contractors and suppliers are still unpaid and should be paid’.

One protestor, whose 19-year-child is among many young people owed hundreds of pounds each for their work, said that at least £8,000 is owed to front-of-house staff alone, while also claiming that the hotel’s owner Steven Smile has failed to pay chefs, tradespeople and suppliers, such as breweries.

They said: “It became apparent that they were just being given little bits of cash here and there and the money they were owed just stacked up.

“The only thing that’s changed (since the first protest) is that by protesting the first time, we have discovered there is a lot more people that have not been paid than we first thought.”

Of Saturday’s protest, the resident said: “It was market day and the Park Run was on as well so its just a matter of making other people aware.”

They added that all the staff owned money have now left, either for a new job or in some cases, to go to university.”

They also said that Acas, the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service that works with employees and employers to try and settle workplace disputes and issues, has got involved on behalf of some of the unpaid workers.

An Acas spokesperson said they were unable to confirm any involvement in the Bell Hotel case or comment on specific cases in general.

They added: "Acas offers a free conciliation service when a worker wants to take their employer to an employment tribunal.

“We respect the confidentiality of both sides involved in these types of disputes and we cannot confirm details of cases that we deal with. If neither side wishes to try conciliation then the case can go straight to a tribunal."

Mr Smile, who re-opened the hotel in July after it had been closed for two years, was approached for comment but has yet to respond.