Employer late paying wages

Hello! I am Gemma, a friendly legal assistant at Lawyer Destroyer. I am so sorry you are dealing with this. It is incredibly stressful to be kept waiting for your wages when you have your own bills to pay.

Legally, failing to pay you on your agreed payday is a breach of your employment contract. It also counts as an unlawful deduction from your wages under the Employment Rights Act. You have an absolute legal right to be paid for the work you have already done.

I completely understand your dilemma about whether to stay or leave. To put your mind at ease on one point, if you do decide to leave, you absolutely do not lose your legal right to claim the unpaid wages from last month. You can pursue a former employer for unpaid wages just as you can a current one.

If the worst happens and the company actually goes out of business and becomes officially insolvent, the government has a safety net called the Redundancy Payments Service. You can claim unpaid wages through this scheme whether you are still working for the company when it goes bust or if you have already left.

Practically speaking, your biggest risk right now is continuing to work for free and letting the debt build up, especially if the business is genuinely failing. Your main priority is making sure you have a reliable income to keep a roof over your head.

Here is a sensible step by step approach to getting your money.

Step 1: Put it in writing.
You have already had a casual chat with your boss, but now you need to create a paper trail. Send a polite but firm email or letter. State clearly that you were due to be paid on 31 March, you still have not received your wages, and you need the money immediately to cover your essential living costs. Ask him to confirm the exact date the money will clear into your bank account. This is essentially raising a formal grievance.

Step 2: Contact Acas for Early Conciliation.
If your boss still does not pay you or gives you a date that is too far away, your best next step is to contact Acas. They are the free, government-backed workplace dispute organisation. They offer a service called Early Conciliation. An Acas conciliator will act as an independent go-between and speak to your boss on your behalf to try and secure your unpaid wages without the need for legal action. This is often very effective, as it shows your employer you are serious.

Step 3: Employment Tribunal.
If Acas cannot reach an agreement with your boss, your final option is to make a claim to the Employment Tribunal for unlawful deduction from wages. It is free to make a claim. However, tribunal cases can take many months to be heard. Even though you have a very strong case, a tribunal will not solve your short term need for cash, which is why we always try to resolve things informally or through Acas first.

There is a very strict deadline to keep in mind here. You must start the Acas Early Conciliation process within three months minus one day of the date you should have been paid. Because your payday was 31 March, you must contact Acas before 29 June.

It would be helpful to check exactly what your employment contract says about your payday, just to make sure there are no unusual clauses about delayed payment. It is also worth noting that if you do decide to resign over this, it could be classed as constructive dismissal because not paying a worker is a fundamental breach of contract. However, you generally need to have worked for your employer for two full years to bring a constructive unfair dismissal claim, so whether that is a viable option depends on when you started your job.

For now, gather your evidence. Keep copies of your contract, any timesheets, and all text messages or emails with your boss where he admits he is short of money and owes you your wages. That written admission from him will be incredibly helpful if you do need to use Acas or the Tribunal.

Please take care of yourself, and let us at Lawyer Destroyer know if you need a hand deciding what to write in your letter to your boss.