Agency work - refusing to pay me

ghostmadlittlemiss

I did a shift as a cleaner at a holiday park last Fri, work which I got through an agency. During the work, the other cleaning staff commented that I needed to speed up but otherwise, no negative feedback was given. I'd never worked there before so I was highly unlikely to be as fast as everyone else. At the end of the shift, the manager of the cleaning company made a note on my timesheet, which I had to return to the agency, asking a woman there to call her. I joked to her, "Oh dear, what have I done?" to which she replied, "Nothing, I just need to talk to her about something and this is simpler than ringing her and leaving a message." 5 mins ago, I got a call off the exact woman the note had been written to, saying that the manager had complained that my work was terrible and that they won't pay the agency for me. I worked for 8 hours and the agency have said they can only pay me for 4.

Now, I have no complaint about the agency, they've been wonderful in agreeing to pay me for at least part of the work, even though they haven't received any money for it. Obviously, I'm very angry with the cleaning company, who lied to my face, claiming the note wasn't about me, and didn't bring up their concerns with me at all. I worked very hard that day and had severe leg pain for 2 days after the work, which required painkillers (only paracetamol, admittedly, but it still hurt) and they are refusing to pay for the work I did. What do I do? Logic says I should treat them like a debt collection agency and only communicate in writing as anything they say over the phone can be denied. But what do I write? Do I even have any rights here as it was only agency work and I didn't have a contract with the company in question. I do have one with the agency but as I said earlier, my complaint isn't with them, they've been brilliant.
Kayleigh
PS Sorry about the marathon post.

jazzyman01

Dont feel sorry for the agency.

If the Company felt you were not doing a good job, they should have told you while you were doing the job. Do you know what they wrote on the timesheet? What you do, depends on whether you want to work for the agency again.

If you were being paid the minimum wage then you have been underpaid and need to bring this to the attention of the agency. State that you were not told your work was substandard and that you finished the day. You were told you were going to be paid x and you were paid y. You now want the difference between the two figures.

MrC_Beds

You should be paid for the total number of hours noted on your timesheet and signed for by the client. The agency are bound to pay you this (unless it is some sort of weird contract!). It's up to them if they don't want to upset their client by demanding their money, but that has nothing to do with their agreement with you - don't let them fob you off!

ghostmadlittlemiss

I wouldn't say I feel sorry for the agency, especially now I've done the math and realised they sent 3 girls that day (including me) and get paid double what they pay us. So even with one down, that's still good money for them. Though I suppose they have to make a profit themselves. But I don't want to p*ss off a potential source of employment. They've got me a lot of good jobs and hopefully, they might get me some more in the future.

The agency won't give me the address of the company and say that any letters have to go through them. Tbh, I'm going to leave it a few days and see how I feel then. Since I joined this site, I tend to get fired up quite easily and determined to fight every battle, even ones best left. So I'm going to take some time to think before I act.
Kayleigh

liney

Whether the client refuse to pay the agency is not your concern; if they didn't want to pay you for your "substandard" work, then they should have sent you home.

You are entitled to be paid for the hours of work you did by the agency, who must then take action to obtain the money from the client. Your issue is actually with the agency. The likelyhood of the agency offering you further work after the client has complained are slim anyway.

Are they members of the REC? it will be on their website or documentation.

Errata

The fight is between the agency and the client. Your fight is with the agency, because they pay you. And pay you far less than the client pays them. Which is their business, not yours.

ghostmadlittlemiss

liney wrote: »

Whether the client refuse to pay the agency is not your concern; if they didn't want to pay you for your "substandard" work, then they should have sent you home.

You are entitled to be paid for the hours of work you did by the agency, who must then take action to obtain the money from the client. Your issue is actually with the agency. The likelyhood of the agency offering you further work after the client has complained are slim anyway.

Are they members of the REC? it will be on their website or documentation.

I'm starting to accept that it's the agency that are at fault here. I'm not sure I'd never get work again off them because of one complaint when I've worked for a total of 4 or 5 different firms through them and I have a clean record with the other firms. In fact, one requested me back. I think I still need a little more time to think as I'll be back in Scarborough for the Xmas party season and I'm not sure if I want to risk losing waiting-on work yet. But I'm happy to learn my options in the meantime.

Yes, they are members of the REC.
Kayleigh

ghostmadlittlemiss

I've just checked on the REC's website and (I quote):

"What agencies can and cannot do by law
An agency must:

• Pay you for work you have done, even if they haven’t been
  paid by the hiring company. (Note – certain exceptions apply
  to agencies operating in entertainment and modelling sectors.)"

It also says that I should complain to the agency first, firstly by requesting a copy of their Complaints Procedure in writing and then writing to the person listed as the named contact for dealing with complaints. Now, I'm useless at writing letters so can someone please help me draft a letter asking for the Complaints Procedure, stating that I know they legally cannot pay me, saying that I only wish to discuss this in writing and saying that if they pay me the money they owe me, I'll drop the whole matter? Only saying the above in legal speak.
Kayleigh

Ames

Kayleigh, I know a lot of people who work in bars and things in Scarborough, and I've never heard of any of them using an agency. Why don't you just contact the bars/hotels/restaurants direct and ask them for work?

liney

Dear Sirs,

I completed an assignment at companyx on xdate, working for 8 hours at £ph. It is my understanding that the company have refused to pay you for my apparent substandard work, and therefore you are intending to pay me for only 4 hours work.

Understandably I am upset that i was not informed that my work was substandard at the time, but instead was allowed to work the entire shift. Secondly that you, the agency will not pay me for the hours I actually worked.

As you will already know, legally, and according to the REC of which you are members, I am entitled to be paid for the full hours which I worked.

The REC's website informs me that the agency must "Pay you for work you have done, even if they haven’t been paid by the hiring company"

So in short, I request the additional payment for hours worked. Please respond in writing only, within 7 working days.

If I do not hear from you by (date) I will assume that I need to take further action.

Yours faithfully,


If you have the managers name, address it to them, and finish the letter "Yours Sincerley"

ghostmadlittlemiss

@ Ames - I would do but I'm never back in Scarborough for long enough, I only go back for 2 or 3 weeks. I just used the agency to pick up odd bits of work on my 'holiday'.

@ liney - Thanks, that letter's perfect for my second letter, once I've got the complaints procedure back.
Kayleigh