Holiday pay with no contract

[Smugfearnleyshittingstool]

My sister has been working casually for a year in a coffee shop, earning a bit over min wage, around 20 hours a week. She has had a fair bit of illness over the last year, lots of little things, and her employers have been quite flexible, allowing her time off.
She has now found a new job with 30 hours and is starting that soon. She now believes( info from her friend) that she is entitled to holiday pay for the previous year. She has no contract at all with the coffee shop as it is a casual arrangement, but her boss says that as April has passed it's too late to request holiday pay for previous year. He had told her at the beginning that he couldn't pay sick or holiday pay as it's a very small business. Does this sound correct? Thanks

www.gov.uk/holiday-entitlement-rights/entitlement

Thanks for that, I did have a look before but it doesn't mention people with no contract at all, she's never signed anything , although she is paid and it's put through HMRC.

There is a contract regardless of whether or not there is anything in writing. Your sister doesn't need to have signed anything. The fact she was working and getting paid means there was a contract.

It sounds like the employer is in breach of the law by failing to give your sister written particulars of employment and by failing to pay holiday pay. They are also in breach if she was off sick for 4 days in a row or more and earned at least £111 per week before tax and they failed to pay SSP.

"He had told her at the beginning that he couldn't pay sick or holiday pay as it's a very small business"

Employers don't get to opt out of various obligations due to their size. If he can't afford to pay holiday pay or statutory sick pay then he can't afford to employ staff, simple as that. The fact that it's past April is irrelevant - his accounting challenges due to underpaying in the previous financial year are not your sister's concern.

Many thanks all, she has a bit of an idea now and is getting some legal advice