Not Getting Paid My PAYE Due To Course Fees

Pwannell

Hi all, I am kind of in need of a little help if possible. I was with a company who put me on a training course in order to achieve a professional qualification and understandably I was not aloud to leave the company within a few years after completing the course else I would need to pay back the entire amount of the course. I unfortunately had a change of circumstance and had to leave the job i was with and they have said that they will not give me my wages for the end of the month and they want the full balance of the course paid in cash, not on a credit card by the end of this month. This however is impossible as I have no funds in order to pay this off immediately. Is it legal for my old company to do this.

Thank you for any advice in this matter

ConfusedDep

Before you started the course did you sign anything?

Did you have any choice in doing the course ?

Pwannell

Yes i signed a document that stated that if i left less than a year after completing the course i would have to pay it back but doesnt state how it needs paying back just that I do. I did also have a choice in the course, it was a good "extra" qualification for the company I worked for any my future career.

ConfusedDep

Ok you need to fish out your contract to see if there is something about allowing deductions.

Did you finish the course and if so how long ago, or are you part way through it.

Was the course through an external provider and was it invoiced by them do you know.

Pwannell

Okay i'll dig the contract out and take a butchers. I am currently part way through the course that was with an external provider that was invoice to me and my company reimbursed me the funds.

ConfusedDep

You can stall and ask for copy of agreement you never know they may have lost it, if it doesn't say it has to be paid back at once they will have a hard time demanding the money the way they are in one go. I think they are trying to scare you at the moment. Did the company you worked for had a policy in place about repayment of fees?

Not sure in what circumstances you have left their employment, you have you left to go to better job or are you unemployed?

If you cannot afford to pay in one go just say you don't have the money then make an offer. The would be very foolish to refuse as if they took you to court they may win but it would have to wait and if you could not afford it they would do a reasonable payment plan. How big is the fee and how long would you need to pay it back.

The problem is the wordings on the agreement need to be very tight to be enforceable, does the wording say the year starts from the start of the course or when the fees were paid. How long is the course?

paulrn_2

It may sound harsh but this is not the companys problem, from what I have read they agreed to pay for a qualification for you which was in both your interests and you agreed a return of service. They kept their side, now you need to keep yours. Imagine the affect this may have on others in the company when they ask for support for the course, I would think twice if I was an employer and had been stung.

Premier_2

Pwannell wrote: »

Hi all, I am kind of in need of a little help if possible. I was with a company who put me on a training course in order to achieve a professional qualification and understandably I was not aloud to leave the company within a few years after completing the course else I would need to pay back the entire amount of the course.

With you so far

Pwannell wrote: »

I unfortunately had a change of circumstance and had to leave the job i was with and they have said that they will not give me my wages for the end of the month and they want the full balance of the course paid in cash, not on a credit card by the end of this month.

Yep, still following you

Pwannell wrote: »

This however is impossible as I have no funds in order to pay this off immediately.

Damn! That's not good is it.

However, as the saying goes, you can't get blood out of a stone.

Have you explained the situation to your former employer? What have they suggested?
Ultimately, if you can't come to some mutual agreement then it'll probably end up in court where, assuming you don't dispute the claim, you can explain to the judge your financial predicament and an appropriate repayment plan will then be ordered.

Pwannell wrote: »

Is it legal for my old company to do this.

Thank you for any advice in this matter

:huh:

Nah, sorry that is where you've lost me.

If you didn't think it legal, why didn't you question the legality of such arrangement before you agreed to it?
Earlier on you said it was "understandably" :huh:

SarEl

Pwannell wrote: »

I unfortunately had a change of circumstance and had to leave the job i was with

Would the "change of circumstance" be another job? Possibly gained because of this useful "extra" qualification for your future career? Because if so - you can pay the money back, from your new wages. In other words, since it does have to be paid back, and you knew this before leaving your job, if you have no job then installments are the best they could get in a court anyway; but if you have a shiny new job then asking for it back isn't really unreasonable if you gained that job at their expense, so to speak. After all - they paid out the money in one go! If you have to tighten your belt to pay it, then so be it.

I am not being unsympathetic here, just agrreing with your statement that it is "understandable". Some companies are now so fed up of being "stung" by employees who gain qualifications at their expense and then leave for new jobs and either refusing to repay fees or paying by dribs and drabs over 10 years that they are refusing to support training, or making employees pay for it and reimbursing them in stages during / after the course to make sure that employees can't leave owing them money. What you do could have an adverse impact on your colleagues and future employees. After all, this isn't really nice of employers to do this either - but it's "understandable".