Employees are entitled to receive their wages as and when expected. If your employer fails to pay you the agreed amount on your agreed pay day, you should address this with them and ask them to give you the correct pay straight away. However, at times, a conversation will not be enough to solve the problem, and you may need to take legal action. This blog will guide you through your rights when your employer owes you pay, and the process of issuing a claim against them.
Your employment rights
As an employee, you have the right:
What can you challenge your employer for?
Your employer has a duty to pay you for all the hours you have worked and for everything you are entitled to, which may include holidays, parental leave, sick pay etc. If you have proof of the hours you have worked, you should show them this.
If your employer has not paid you (or other employees) for a while on account of money problems, it might be difficult to get any pay they owe. Though, you can still take legal action against them. You can take action even if you have resigned.
If non-payment is a recent issue, it is in your best interests to carry on working while trying to solve the problem; otherwise, you risk breaking your contract and your employer could be entitled to dismiss you.
An employer cannot take money out of your pay unless authorised to do so - any deductions must be limited to the authorised amount. Deductions may be required or authorised either by virtue of:
Your employer can also deduct money that they have previously overpaid you and for money that you have cost them if your contract stipulates that they are entitled to do so.
If your circumstances fall within the scope of one or more of these exceptions, deductions from your wages will be lawful and it may be difficult for you to challenge your pay. Check your contracts and any written agreements to see if any deductions have been authorised before proceeding further with your challenge.
How to challenge your employer
If you think your employer has unlawfully withheld, underpaid, or deducted from your wages, you should:
Talk to your employer - check your pay slip to work out what the problem is, bring it to your employer and ask them to justify the amount. Where possible, you could raise a formal grievance with your employer to try to get them to pay you what they owe you.
Speak with an advisor - if they refuse to pay you what is owed and you are considering bringing a claim, make sure to first speak with a solicitor to assess your case and to ensure that you are fully informed of your legal standing.
Take legal action -you might be able to take your employer to an employment tribunal, which will decide whether you are owed wages or not. You must initiate this process within 3 months, minus 1 day from the date you should have been paid. It is therefore vital that you act quickly when you notice a problem: always check your pay slip upon receipt and bring any discrepancies to your employer’s attention as soon as possible.
‘Early conciliation’ with ACAS will take place before you start a tribunal claim - this should be taken as an opportunity to reach a legal agreement so that there is no need to proceed to a tribunal. If you are still unhappy with your standing, you can bring a claim and if successful, the tribunal must make a declaration ordering your employer to pay you the entitlement.
Though making an employment tribunal claim should be a last resort, you might find that there is no other way to compel your employer to respect your right to full and fair pay. You are entitled to take the necessary steps to guarantee your rights as a worker.
