TAX inspectors are being asked to investigate alleged workplace abuses at branches of TGI Fridays across the country.

The Unite union is calling on HM Revenue and Customs to urgently investigate a series of complaints over how the US restaurant chain’s senior management treats its workers.

The alleged abuses include a failure to pay staff for undertaking compulsory training in their time off.

There are also several allegations regarding the enforced “holding back” of workers, where a manager will manually override the clocking off time to avoid paying the worker more money.

Other concerns include managers demanding that workers start shifts only when the restaurant is busy, and not paying them for the time they are in the workplace but not working.

The union also remains highly critical of the company’s tronc system, which is supposed to fairly distribute tips to staff.

Union members will be protesting outside the chain’s Covent Garden branch in London tomorrow to bring attention to the dispute.

The union’s regional officer Dave Turnbull said: “TGI Fridays has behaved appallingly to its loyal and hardworking waiting staff.

“Self-regulation has clearly failed.”