A new report by Dundee Citizens Advice Bureau highlights the victims of low pay and poor pay practices in the city.
The bureau compiled the report in time for a meeting with the Low Pay Commission, which is touring the UK to gather evidence on the issue.
It focused on the experiences of it clients, revealing that 20% of all employment cases it deals with are related to pay and entitlement.
The report also shows more than half of those affected by low pay issues are under 34, and nearly 60% are women.
Dundee CAB director Mary Kinninmonth said: “These clients are often low paid, relatively low skilled, often unaware of their employment rights and are vulnerable to poor and illegal employment practices.
“The recession has created a situation in which these poor practices are more common.
“Employees will often put up with poor employment practices for fear of losing their job and frequently will accept radical changes to their pay and hours rather than face a tough labour market, whereas employers will often try to cut corners and slash costs in order to stay afloat.
“It is a difficult economic situation for both employers and employees. However, it is in the interests of both that the employment rights of workers are enforced.
“Poor employers can make life miserable for their employees, but they can also distort the playing field through unfairly reduced costs and put good employers under pressure to do the same.”
Evidence from CAB clients includes one 19-year-old who has been a trainee employee of a hair and beauty salon since September 2011 and works full time.
The client is paid £95 a week, cash in hand. However, she recently discovered another trainee gets paid £120 a week into her bank account. When she requested pay slips, they showed her monthly net pay to be £520.
The report says: “The client strongly believes she is being unlawfully underpaid.
“The client also says she has in the past worked overtime several times, but still gets paid £95 per week.”
Another client believes she is having unlawful deductions taken from her pay. She works in a food chain and has not received a contract of employment despite asking several times for it.
She is paid the minimum wage but is deducted half an hour a day for a break she rarely feels capable of taking.
The report states: “She is on an emergency tax code and the tax office has told her they have no record of her employment.”
Unemployment rates in Dundee continue to be high, according to the report.
Labour market reports show that Dundee City has the second lowest employment rate in Scotland at 61.7%, and while Dundee is not the highest local authority area for youth unemployment, employment rates for 16-24 year olds fall between 45-55%.
Ms Kinninmonth added: “With this in mind, it is important that those who do find work in our city are treated fairly by employers, and that employment rights surrounding pay and entitlements are adhered to.”
Dundee CAB advised on 910 new employment issues in 2012/13. Almost 20% of these related to employment pay and entitlements.