Employment Tribunal for Unpaid Wages

[Gazer]

Hi,

I left my employer after resignation in April 2023

My PAYE employment contract for payment was 2 months in arrears and I wasn't paid at the end of May for April's work despite the employer paying the HMRC and pension.

Employer refused to engage with me and the ACAS Medication process, I've been since been given a Hearing date however I'm surprised because the court have also confirmed they didn't receive an ET3 Employer response form

The Court have asked me to prepare my bundle which I can provide, Contract, Bank statements, P45, Tax statement showing Tax paid on salary, Pension statement showing pension payment for May's salary.

I assume I proceed to send the bundle to the Court and work on the Hearing date in January despite the Flow chart showing no response from the Employer leads to a Judges decision pre Hearing?

[ULA]

Even if the employer has not responded by way of an ET3 you still need to provide the documentation to the Tribunal to support your claim for the Judge to make a decision. Send all your documentation in and it may be reviewed by a Judge and a decision made in advance of your hearing date. However, continue to proceed as if the hearing was going to take place as Tribunals are back-logged on admin.

If you have heard nothing nearer the time of the hearing it may be worth phoning (be prepared to wait to be answered) to see if the hearing is still going ahead without a response from the respondent, if that is still the case.

[Gazer]

Thank you, I've now submitted a bundle to the Court in advance of the hearing due 29th January.
I sent several documents incidentally that prove the employer paid both HMRC my tax and Nest my Pension but just didn't pay my wages to me!

I had made an error on my initial form listing the directors not the Company as the Respondent, The Judge reviewed this and asked for it to be served again, to the Company title, but acknowledged they were out of time with an ET3 non response and would still need to explain the late response if they were so inclined to respond, also they've kept to the scheduled hearing date, I thought that was a generous piece of administration from the Court.

[ULA]

Thank you for the update.

[Gazer]

Further update
on the 29th January (the date scheduled for the hearing) the case was postponed due to a lack of employment judges.
It's been postponed until July, I've complained but heard nothing since.
Employers contact emails (2x directors) now bounce back as not in use.

[ULA]

It is unlikely that you will hear anything back if you are making a complaint about the availability of Judges.

Is the respondent company acting as litigant's in person without a solicitor representing them? If they are and you are now getting a bounce back you my have to start sending correspondence recorded and signed for via the post.

[Gazer]

Yes they are acting as litigant in person, I don't think they will be trading much longer in reality the Business is effectively dormant, the directors have split up and are doing other things.

Regarding the Tax Situation, the employer paid the tax in this financial year as if I had been paid.
Although employed I still submit Self Assessments so do I have to use the figures reflected on the Tax Statement even though I wasn't paid?

[ULA]

Hi Gazer other than having to fill out self assessments also I would not like to advise on what figure you put in. May be a question for an accountant?

[Gazer]

With only 3 weeks to go until my revised hearing date,
A. Is there any other paperwork I should submit
B. Can I claim interest on the wages if awarded based on being 14months late (assuming I will get them from the ex employer).

[ULA]

Did you submit your bundle for the earlier hearing? If you did I would just call the Tribunal and double check that they still have the hard copy and electronic copy available, they should do but worth checking with them.

In respect of interest, this is payable on awards if they remain wholly or partly unpaid more than 14 days after the relevant decision day. Sums in the award Interest starts to accrue from the day immediately after the relevant decision day, which is called the calculation day.

[Gazer]

Good evening.

As a Conclusion update

My hearing was heard on Wednesday as per the rescheduled date and the Respondent failed to attend the CVP hearing

I was awarded the Claim and was given time to assist with the Calculations to split into two claims, being Unpaid Wages and unpaid annual leave.

The Hearing was very professional and pleasant, Judge Ore was sympathetic and conscientious, and apologetic for the extended delay.

Overall, although it has taken some 13 months from the initial ACAS contact, the right result thought the right channels.

Getting the monies will be another matter!

Thanks to ULA for all of your advice.

[ULA]

Thank you for the update following your hearing.

Any issues with getting the monies there is a process but if you need advice just come back to this thread.

Glad that you found my advice helpful.

Best wishes

[Gazer]

Monday is the final date for Payment and I've had no communication from the Respondent they will be make a payment.
Both directors of the respondent have received the Order via WhatsApp and email address and have since Blocked me (now only one delivery tick).

Do I need to send a letter by recorded delivery with my account details for Payment prior to going through the fast track court application for enforcement? Or doing anything else on top?

[ULA]

I was not aware the Tribunal are sending Orders via WhatsApp but certainly the Orders would have been sent to the Respondents by email.

Yes, they will certainly need to be advised of your bank account details for making payment to you of the sum set out in the Orders. I suggest you send by email and by recorded delivery post.

[Gazer]

It was actually myself who sent the Order via Whatsapp.
Both directors email addresses have bounced back previously so I wanted to ensure they'd received it.

I'll follow up with a recorded delivery letter, the company is registered to one of the directors personal addresses, will this make enforcement more complicated?