Law firm Clarke Willmott is urging agricultural employers to be aware of tough new employment legislation that means they could face jail or financial ruin if caught employing illegal migrant workers.

The tough new measures on illegal workers mean employers face stiff penalties of £10,000 for every illegal worker they hire - whether knowingly or not - or up to two years in prison.

Not only that, say specialists at Clarke Willmott, but there is also the potential for bosses who do try to comply with the rules to face employment tribunals for race discrimination.

Kate Gardner, partner in the employment team at Clarke Willmott in Taunton, said: “Employers found to be breaking the law could be stripped of their right to employ any migrant workers in the UK. Clearly removal of this right could be devastating to many agricultural businesses, who rely on migrant workers to keep their business going.”

Gardner’s advice for employers to help them avoid the pitfalls are:

• seek proof of all potential new recruits’ rights to work in the UK

• photocopy all workers’ passports or other immigration status documents showing they are entitled to work in the UK, together with a copy of any Home Office ID card

• record and keep safe all migrant workers’ addresses and telephone numbers

The government crackdown is part of a range of measures being introduced this year, including an Australian-style points system for managing immigration and biometric identity cards for any foreign national in the country for more than three months.

Employers must also conduct checks every 12 months on migrant workers who have limited leave to remain in the UK, and the Borders and Immigration Agency (BIA) has issued a code of practice to help employers avoid unlawful discrimination whilst seeking to prevent illegal working.

“Employers need to develop systems to identify when further checks should be made if they are to escape prosecution,” said Kate Gardner. “At Clarke Willmott we can advise those who regularly employ migrant workers about the current rules and how to avoid the penalties. It’s vitally important that employers are fully aware of these new immigration rules in order to avoid the stiff penalties.”