My employer is scamming me!! HELP

[BellaSing1607]

When corona virus started, my employer decided to close before the lockdown happened and before the Furlough scheme came out. When they announced the scheme, i asked my employer via whatsapp what will happen from now on, she said that "she will pay me up until the 17th of march which is up to when i have worked, and from there on the government will pay 80% of my salary."
I assumed this is her way of telling me i have now been furloughed. I checked in with her a few days later again, and asked her if the government will pay 80% of my salary, to which she responded "yes, I told you about this before and the accountants are working on it" so its a pretty clear agreement. I had no idea she was meant to send me a formal letter to announce that i have been furloughed.
Days come and go and whenever i would ask her for my payment, she would say the government hasn't paid her yet so she can't pay me, that there is a very long qeue and everyone is waiting, that we are all in this together and i should be patient bla bla. May came and i still hadn't gotten paid for march, not even the days i had actually worked. I asked all my friends and they all said they had gotten paid on the furlough scheme. (I only have one colleague and she is self employed)

I messaged the employer again to tell her everyone i know had gotten paid on the furlough scheme except me, what the problem is, and that the issue is wirh her not the government. She then replied and said we are not able to pay you because her accountants hadn't put me on the payroll by the deadline which was 19TH OF MARCH !! I had been working there since SEPTEMBER!!!.

when i asked her to send me an email to confirm that i had been furloughed she denied that we had any kind of agreement of me being furloughed, saying that she only sent these text based on an assumption. I am going crazy as now i am already minus 3 months in salary and i dont think i can do anyrhing about it.

I have been working for this woman since september last year, haven't received any of my payslips until mid april. I haven't asked for them as i never needed one, and thought if she is messing around with my taxes that would be her problem. Ofcourse now looking back i feel stupid for not asking for them.

In my last payslip that she sent me, it includes furlough payment although she didnt end up paying the amount as there was a mistake with the amount. Do you think this is enoigh proof to confirm we did have an agreement of furloughing me ?

What can i do to get my money ??? Please help

I would probably ring hmrc about this as she is acting fraudulently if you were not reported on the payroll at all before 19th March

I agree, a phone call to HMRC is in order.

Have you got a contract?

Call hmrc, but WTF were you doing working without payslips for 6m?!

Were you paid cash?
I’d phone up HMRC for advice.

Yes i agree i will contact HMRC and ACAS on monday, but i dont think they will be able to do anything do you? Unless she is able to backtrack my dates and prove that i have been on the payroll/ should have been there since september... Also i never needed the payslips so i never asked for them, which now ofcourse i have learnt from ...

No i was paid normally via bank transfer and now have all my payslips which include taxes and NI. She just didnt send them before for some reason. The last one does say "furlough payment" and the amount, but was never paid as there was a mistake in calculation ...

She's probably claiming the payment and keeping it; so get onto HRMC at once.

You can sign up to an online account on gov.uk, all your monthly pay will be on there.

I can see mine from years & years ago.

She’s kept your payment.

I was paid normally via bank transfer and now have all my payslips which include taxes and NI

If you've actually been on the payroll with taxes and NI paid as your payslips apparently prove, then there is no reason you shouldn't get furlough.

BUT - clearly those payslips are a bit worthless if you've got one for an amount you haven't been paid.

I would get on to HMRC because this is clearly something you cannot sort out with her as she's lying and misdirecting.

It sounds like your employer is either totally out of her depth or fraudulent.

Do you intend to go back to work for this woman??? I can understand if you are going to go back then you might want to tread lightly but if not then I’d be messaging her to say you’ll be contacting HMRC yourself to sort the furlough payment as you’ve asked multiple times and are still waiting with bills and debt mounting in the meantime. If she’s scamming you she’ll shit herself and pay you straight away, if not it might put a ticket up her anyway

Get onto HMRC. It sounds like she'es defrauded you if your payslip says one thing and you've received something else. I'd also talk to someone like CAB too.

Your employer sounds dodgy, I'm sorry. You need to call the HMRC.

Whether you need them or not you should always receive a pay slip. I literally file mine at home, but my employer never has to be asked.

When I was placed on furlough I was told over a telephone call. 2 days later a letter was received which I had to sign and send an image to my boss to confirm I understood.

I cant say for sure if there isnt a backlog in the payments. There may well be due to the value being put through but she hasn't dont things correctly and I would be really really worried. I was paid on time when we were told we would.

When you are paid by bank transfer does it come from the business account, as in does it state your employers name? If so surely that means you are on payroll so why is she saying you wasn't?

She doesn't sound very open with her staff. We have been communicated with every step and receive weekly updates on what the business are doing and how and when they will stagger us back to work.

Good luck

it is a legal requirement to give pay slips, ring ACAS, also tell your employer its unlawful deductions since she hasnt paid you what you are owed, keep all messages between you. my last employer didnt give me a contract, i got promoted but didnt get the pay. i ended up leaving and my last wage should have been over £800 and they paid me £4.11 i went through ACAS submitted my certificate to take them to court as i had proof and 8 weeks later the company paid me. write an email to your boss stating the unlawful deductions and you would like paid by x date (need to give reasonable time to pay)
fight for your money!

I hope you get sorted OP.

I'd be sending a text telling her I was phoning hmrc first thing Monday morning!

Is she my ex employer? I left before lockdown, but she constantly‘forgot’ to pay staff, would say one thing & then deny it. An absolute nightmare. She’s currently trying to fiddle the furlough arrangements.

Just a warning, part of my job is phoning HMRC daily, I usually manage 20-30 calls a day before Covid 19. Since the 3rd week in March I have got through 15 times in total. On Thursday I spoke to someone (after hours of holding/getting cut off) who I know (know as in have spoken to many times in the last two years so recognise each other). She said they have 2500 people at a time queuing with their phone systems cutting out after someone holds for 45 mins so you then go to the back of the line. Their queue only allows 2,500 to hold.

I'd say that you are planning to call HMRC, that might prompt her to pay you. Then call HMRC when you are sure you're not going to get any money from her. If HMRC investigate her they might pursue her for any taxes she's not paid but they won't help you get paid. Companies pay the staff then claim furlough payments from HMRC, she's not supposed to wait for the furlough payments before she pays you.
Get what you can, then get away from her and definitely report her to HMRC when you're sure you've had all you're going to get from her.

I also think she’s scammed you somehow out of the furlough money. It’s very clear in her messages that she acknowledges you are an employee and that the start date of furlough. Just because she doesn’t use that word, the implication is clear. Definitely report her to hmrc. Hopefully they will come down hard on her.

Tell her you are ringing HMRC for clarification, that should see her paying you ASAP. The government have been clear there will be harsh penalties for people defrauding the system.

Screenshot the messages. Are you in a union?

You had to be on a payroll at 19 March in order to be eligible, but if they had been paying you and deducting tax and nic, then they must have a record of how that was worked out at the time. If tax/nic was deducted from you and not paid to HMRC then that is fraud or owed to HMRC.

I would ring HMRC and ask them if they have any payroll records of you at all for this firm and explain the situation and ask what you should do as there is clearly something wrong.

If you are on the payroll but it was just March wages that weren't done, that doesn't stop them from paying you and claiming furlough. Some accountants really don't seem to have grasped it properly.

I think that there is some misunderstanding about how the scheme works on this thread.

Is it possible that you were on the payroll but were removed when you were made redundant with a last payment on 17th March?

To be re-instated and furloughed is not a right or an obligation. It is voluntary for employers. It costs them more as you accrue holiday pay and someone has to administer the scheme. Holiday entitlement has to be paid at 100%

So from what you say she has probably done nothing wrong. It sounds as if she has not re-employed and then furloughed you- which she is perfectly entitled to do.

Have you been paying tax and NI?