Is this even legal?! None payment of wages

melting_snow

I work as a carer and have recently been informed by head office that if time sheets aren't handed in on time, you will not be paid. At all. Before if you handed it in late, they would stil pay you but not until the following week. Now they are saying if it's not in, you won't be paid a penny.

Is this even legal??

marybelle01

No it isn't. But the point is surely to get your time sheets in on time and then you won't have to argue about it?

V_Chic_Chick

It's not remotely legal. You cannot sign away your right to be paid the legal minimum wage.

Join a union now, and if it does happen then you will be well prepared. The CAB, ACAS and the Pay and Work Rights Helpline are also good places to go for help if you aren't paid.

Frankly, however, I'd be looking for another job - there are plenty of care jobs out there.

Firefox1975

if you didn;t hand a timesheet in there would be nothing to stop them paying you for perhaps 5 hours work a week. (instead of 40 for instance)

Afterall, they don;t know how many hours you've done!

you would always get it paid back eventually but you have to live in the meantime!

surely its in your best interests to hand it in and make sure it is handed in?!>?!?!

colino

Of course they can withhold payment, as you will be well aware as a carer the timesheet doesn't just act a voucher for payment, like a receipt for a gallon of petrol, but proves you were caring for the person, where you were caring for that person and for how long.
If you are objecting to this, you are not long for that employer.

prowla

Don't you just love HR departments?

There is some jumped-up nobody there who is really upset that people have the audacity to not put in their timesheets immediately, and so they have decided that it is their role in life (not to mention justifying their own job) to put their foot down and let all of these unimportant front line workers know exactly where they stand.

The could certainly say that the cutoff date for receipt of timesheets for a given month's payment run is the 15th (or whatever), but refusing to pay at all is just plain theft.

melting_snow

Of course they can withhold payment, as you will be well aware as a carer the timesheet doesn't just act a voucher for payment, like a receipt for a gallon of petrol, but proves you were caring for the person, where you were caring for that person and for how long.
If you are objecting to this, you are not long for that employer.

Its not a matter of proving you were actually there caring for them, but rather handing the timesheet in even an hour late means you wont get paid at all. I am not talking about not handing the time sheet in, but handing it in late.

I have always handed mine in on time, I take them to the office myself, even though its on the other side of town. I have only been there for 4 weeks and am already looking for a new job because of this stupid rule they've decided they want to implement. The company is a shambles; even though i handed in my time sheet on time the week before last, I didn't get paid last week because they misplaced it in the office. I have now received the payment, but I don't trust that even if my timesheet is in on time, that it will be processed.

Yorkie1

Are you making sure you take a copy (or even a good photo) of your timesheet before you hand it in? Just in case ...

DVardysShadow

colino wrote: »

Of course they can withhold payment, as you will be well aware as a carer the timesheet doesn't just act a voucher for payment, like a receipt for a gallon of petrol, but proves you were caring for the person, where you were caring for that person and for how long.
If you are objecting to this, you are not long for that employer.

I think you missed the point. This is not about handing in the time sheet - OP accepts the principle. This is about the employer refusing to accept the time sheet if it is late and not paying anything at all.

To my mind, the Statute of Limitations comes into play here - a time sheet can be up to 6 years late before payment can be denied. If you get your claim in to a court within 6 years of the work being done and the time sheet being handed in, a court would start from the premise that the money should be paid and would not be the least bit influenced by the artificially imposed time sheet deadline. The only serious argument which might sway them would be thta the work had not been done.

getmore4less

It would probably not even need a time shhet just proof the work was done.

If the hours are contracted they probably should be paying them anyway at basic rate and the time sheet only used for enhanced rates and overtime..

melting_snow

Yorkie1 wrote: »

Are you making sure you take a copy (or even a good photo) of your timesheet before you hand it in? Just in case ...

Yup, photocopying them

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I rang CAB today and they said to ring ACAS. I explained the situation to them and they said it is indeed illegal nd to join a union. I will join one ASAP and am also looking for another job.