What are my rights if my employer does not pay me the correct salary?

If you are not paid correctly then you may be entitled to make a claim for unlawful deductions from wages. Unlawful deduction claims can be used to claim for all types of pay including:

• Notice pay;
• Unpaid overtime;
• Contractual bonuses;
• Redundancy pay;

When can my employer make deductions from my pay?

There are only three circumstances in which an employer can make deductions from your pay.

(1) The deduction is required by law

For example Income tax, national insurance or direct earnings attachments.

(2) The deduction is authorised in your employment contract

In this case you must have seen the employment contract which contained the right to make the deductions before the deductions were made.

(3) You have provided written consent

If your employer wants to make another sort of deduction then you must have given your written consent.

Example

Terry works as a delivery driver and drives a van provided for him by his employer.  One day Terry reverses the van into a bollard and causes several hundred pounds worth of damage.  Terry’s employer cannot simply take the money out of his next pay unless they have his written consent to do so or there is a clause in his contract which permits them to deduct money.

Your employer is also entitled to make deductions in the following circumstances:

• If you are late for work;
• If you take an unauthorised absence;
• If you take time off sick and are not entitled to sick pay;
• If you take time off work to care for a child that is unwell or when childcare arrangements have fallen through;
• If you can’t get to work because of snow or flooding;
• If you do not work because you are on strike;
• If you need to deal with an emergency at home.

I have been overpaid can my employer take the money back?

Your employer can take money back from you if they have paid you too much by mistake.  They must be reasonable about how they claim back that money.  If the amount is quite large then they should really take small amounts over a long period rather than take the money in one lump sum.

I have been docked pay because the till where I work was short of money at the end of the day.

If you work in retail there are special rules for the amount of money that can be taken off your pay for cash shortages.

I have incurred bank charges fbecause my employer did not pay me properly.

If you bring a

How do I claim back money I am owed by my employer?

If you have had pay taken away without your consent or if you have not been paid as much as you should have been or even not paid at all then you have two options.

1. You can issue an unlawful deduction from wages claim to an Employment Tribunal;
2. You can bring a breach of contract claim at a County Court.