Employer late paying wages

Late or non-payment of wages is a common problem and there are several practical and legal routes available to you depending on the circumstances.

Legal position:

Your employer is contractually obliged to pay you in accordance with the terms of your employment contract. This includes the amount, frequency, and date of payment. A failure to pay on time is a breach of contract.

In addition, under Part II of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (sections 13 to 27), your employer must not make unauthorised deductions from your wages. Where your employer simply fails to pay you at all or pays you late, this can amount to an unlawful deduction from wages, because the full amount due was not paid on the date it was due.

If you are paid at or near the National Minimum Wage, a failure to pay on time may also engage National Minimum Wage legislation, and HMRC can investigate and enforce compliance.

Practical steps in a sensible order:

1. Check your contract, payslip, and any recent communications. Confirm the contractual pay date and what you were expecting to receive. Sometimes delays are caused by administrative errors, bank processing times, or payroll mistakes.

2. Raise it informally with your employer. Speak to your line manager or the person responsible for payroll. Many late payments are resolved quickly once flagged. Put it in writing, even a short email, so you have a record.

3. Put it in writing formally if informal contact does not resolve the issue. Write a clear letter or email setting out what is owed, when it was due, and that you expect payment by a specific date. Keep the tone professional but firm. Refer to your contractual entitlement and your right not to have unauthorised deductions made from your wages under the Employment Rights Act 1996.

4. Use your employer's grievance procedure. If the issue continues or you feel your concerns are being ignored, submit a formal grievance. This is important not only as a practical step but also because employment tribunals will expect you to have tried internal resolution before bringing a claim.

5. Contact ACAS. Before bringing an employment tribunal claim, you are required to notify ACAS through early conciliation. ACAS will attempt to facilitate a resolution. This is a mandatory step before issuing a tribunal claim for unlawful deduction from wages. You can contact ACAS on 0300 123 1100 or through their website.

6. Bring an employment tribunal claim for unlawful deduction from wages. If the matter is not resolved, you can bring a claim under section 23 of the Employment Rights Act 1996. The time limit is three months less one day from the date of the last deduction (or the last in a series of deductions), though the early conciliation process can extend this slightly. There is no fee to bring an employment tribunal claim at present.

7. County court claim for breach of contract. As an alternative or in addition, you could bring a claim in the county court for the money owed as a straightforward debt or breach of contract claim. This may be more appropriate if you have already left the employment or the amount is large. Court fees apply and are based on the value of the claim.

Other considerations:

If the non-payment is serious, persistent, or part of a pattern, it may amount to a fundamental breach of contract. In some circumstances this could entitle you to resign and claim constructive unfair dismissal, but this is a high-risk step and should not be taken lightly or without careful thought about your financial position and the strength of your evidence.

If your employer is insolvent and genuinely unable to pay, you may be able to claim certain amounts from the National Insurance Fund through the Redundancy Payments Service, including arrears of wages (up to eight weeks, capped at the statutory weekly limit), notice pay, holiday pay, and redundancy pay.

Key things to keep a record of:

Your contract of employment and any variations, payslips, bank statements showing what was or was not received, any correspondence with your employer about the issue, and a timeline of when payments were due and when (if at all) they were actually made.

The most important thing is to act promptly, keep written records, and not let the three-month tribunal time limit pass without at least starting the ACAS early conciliation process.