Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Work

Chat with other users about all things related to working life on our Work forum.

Original poster

Wages

41 replies

BoredTrish83 · 01/08/2025 15:31

Hey 👋
I'm after some advice please

My husband came back from work Sunday night (starts early monday) as felt awful mentally.
He emailed work on Tuesday no response
He is self certified for 7 days ends next Monday
The thing is he hasn't got paid today for last week's wage can they do that?
Thankyou in advance

OP posts:
Loveduppenguin · 01/08/2025 15:33

Well it all depends on the contract? Is he paid weekly? That’s strange these days

Hayley1256 · 01/08/2025 15:35

What's the companies sickness policy? Also I've not heard of someone self certifying for 7 days in advance (unless they've had a operation and it's recovery time). The staff I manage would call me amd take it day by day

Also shouldn't he be trying to call his employer rather that emailing them I would be worried if I messaged to say I'm too sick too work and then didn't hear from them for a week.

Sorry I know this probably doesn't help with the wage question

Original poster
BoredTrish83 · 01/08/2025 15:36

He doesn't have a contract and he is paid weekly for the week before x

OP posts:
Original poster
BoredTrish83 · 01/08/2025 15:37

We thought having it in black and white would be better then over the phone , as he can't deal with much this week mentally x

OP posts:
Michele09 · 01/08/2025 15:39

You dont get SSP for the 1st 3 days of sickness.

Original poster
BoredTrish83 · 01/08/2025 15:41

@Michele09yes I understand that , I'm more asking about hes earned wages from last week x

OP posts:
Loveduppenguin · 01/08/2025 15:42

BoredTrish83 · 01/08/2025 15:36

He doesn't have a contract and he is paid weekly for the week before x

Well if he doesn’t have a contract he hasn’t a leg to stand on to be honest…for anything.

Hayley1256 · 01/08/2025 15:44

Why doesn't he have a contract? I don't think there is much you can to in that case

Original poster
BoredTrish83 · 01/08/2025 15:50

I don't know why he hasn't to be fair , 😕
Okay at least I know now why he hasn't, me being naive thought they might of been nice but suppose they have to think about their business and it saved them a bit of money x

OP posts:
PinkFrogss · 01/08/2025 16:54

Is it the week he was off sick for that he hasn’t been paid for, or the week he was off sick?

And when you say he doesn’t have a contract do you mean he’s not an employee or he just doesn’t have a physical written contract?

Horserider5678 · 01/08/2025 19:43

BoredTrish83 · 01/08/2025 15:37

We thought having it in black and white would be better then over the phone , as he can't deal with much this week mentally x

He should have telephoned and followed it up in an email! Companies generally do not accept emails as a way of reporting absence. So as he’s probably not followed procedure they’re probably withholding his pay!

OhYeahOhYeah · 01/08/2025 19:57

BoredTrish83 · 01/08/2025 15:36

He doesn't have a contract and he is paid weekly for the week before x

If he is employed and paid (weekly or otherwise) there will be a contract. He might not have necessarily been handed it in paper but there is one. And that will give sick pay policy.

It may be he is only entitled to SSP, in which case he won’t be paid for the first three days, but thereafter he’s eligible for up to 28 weeks.

It doesn’t sound like he’s followed company policy with respect of reporting illness and absence though.

Has he actually spoken to his employer over the phone? Phone calls are typically expected at the earliest opportunity at the onset of illness.

ChattiB · 01/08/2025 19:58

You could see citizens advice? Its difficult for anyone to help without knowing the nature of work, length of time hes being working, who the employer is and terms of the agreement. Does the employer pay his tax & NI then give him a wage or does he self assess? There'll be lots of info they'll use to help you. Good luck!

Ireallywantadoughnut36 · 01/08/2025 19:58

If its the week he worked (wasn't sick and completed normal hours/duties) and he always gets paid on a Monday they can't withhold it because he's now sick. That's unpaid and owed wages and a tribunal would immediately request it be paid. How long has he worked there? If it's years, and it's always been weekly wages paid the Monday following the week at work and suddenly they're not paying, then it doesn't matter if there's no contract - something called "custom and practice" kicks in, which basically means that if it's always done that way, they should keep doing it that way.
However, be careful self certifying, it's normally 5 days and you normally don't say "i'll be taking all my sick leave". I'd get him to the GP, get him officially signed off and diagnosed with stress, or alternatively does he have annual leave he can take if what he actually needs is a rest and a break. As a heads up, contract or not, if he only gets paid weekly, it means they can only give him a weeks notice if they dismiss him or if he resigns...

WonderingWanda · 01/08/2025 20:19

Am I misreading? So he came home Sunday night. Felt unwell with his mental health. Took the day off Monday but didn't phone in sick? Sent an email to say he was off sick on Tuesday? He is still off sick now and the issue is he hasn't been paid for last week? Could they be withholding his wages because on Monday he didn't show up with no explanation? Or if he has no contract, maybe they've fired him for not turning up?

Has he seen his gp or is he receiving any treatment for his mental health? I would think needing a week off must mean he is quite unwell.

Hankunamatata · 01/08/2025 20:23

Everywhere I have worked wouldnt accept and email. You have to ring in on the day and every day you are sick

caramelsauce · 01/08/2025 20:25

Regardless of if he’s followed correct procedures for being off sick he’s still entitled to wages he earned the week previous. If he doesn’t have a written contract it doesn’t mean he doesn’t have one at all. A contract can be verbal or implied. Is he an actual employee on payroll or is he subcontracted?

Northerngirl821 · 01/08/2025 20:30

If he’s paid on a Friday then presumably the pay week is from the previous Friday until the Thursday of this week. You said he went home sick on Sunday. Did he work the Friday or the Saturday? If he didn’t then it sounds like he hasn’t worked any full shifts this week so he wouldn’t have any wages owing.

This is assuming he doesn’t get sick pay. If he does get sick pay then that might have been witheld if he didn’t follow the correct notification period.

The alternative possibility is that they think he has quit and are holding any outstanding pay in lieu of notice.

tommyhoundmum · 01/08/2025 20:35

BoredTrish83 · 01/08/2025 15:50

I don't know why he hasn't to be fair , 😕
Okay at least I know now why he hasn't, me being naive thought they might of been nice but suppose they have to think about their business and it saved them a bit of money x

Of course they must pay him for the week he has worked.

You might considerd telephoning to ask on his behalf why his earnings have not been paid into his account

Toseland · 01/08/2025 20:40

Even at school these days you have to phone before the start of the day. Every day you are sick.

Bgasfraudfraud · 01/08/2025 20:42

Is he working cash in hand? Does he claim benefits? No contract is illegal surely.

ByQuaintAzureWasp · 01/08/2025 20:43

Loveduppenguin · 01/08/2025 15:42

Well if he doesn’t have a contract he hasn’t a leg to stand on to be honest…for anything.

Show quote history

Not true. He does have a contract and his employer is acting illgally by not providing him with a statement of particulars.
Their sickness policy may be that he telephones. If he hadn't followed procedure then that's on him.

Velmy · 01/08/2025 20:44

I'll be honest, this comes across as him taking the piss a little.

  • You don't self certify yourself for a set number of days in advance outside of very exceptional circumstances. He's not a doctor, and he might feel fine in the morning. This reeks of "I'm taking the most time off that I can without having to see an actual Dr".
  • You ring in to work if you're sick. I'm sure there's the odd place that does it differently but I've yet to come across one. Sending an email, again, reeks of trying to blag time off and avoiding having to speak to someone.

We thought having it in black and white would be better then over the phone

Come on now...if someone said this to me at work I'd be insulted that they thought I was stupid enough to believe it.

  • Is the work he's doing all above board? Is he an employee? Does he pay tax/NI etc? Or a contractor?
  • I think it's safe to assume that if he doesn't have a contract, the company isn't going to have any/much of a sickness package. In which case (assuming he works five days a week) he'll be eligible for two days SSP for the week he was/is off sick.
  • What I think you're saying though is that it's the wages for the prior week, which he worked in full, that haven't been paid. If that's the case, they shouldn't be withholding that money just because he's now off sick.

He needs to call them and chase this up ASAP. Get him to speak to ACAS first. However, he's shot himself in the foot here, because he wasn't well enough to call in sick, but he is well enough to call about his missing wages. You can see how that looks.

Here's the thing - what if nobody has read that email? What if the person he sent it to is also off sick/on leave? What if it went into spam, or was deleted by mistake? As far as they know he's simply disappeared, and I expect that's the reason they'll give for not paying his wages, rightly or wrongly.

I just can't get my head around not calling in, for the best part of a week. Ridiculous.

Rosscameasdoody · 01/08/2025 20:47

OP it depends on how he’s paid. If it’s in arrears then he may not be due to be paid for last week until the next pay day.

Comefromaway · 01/08/2025 20:54

Assuming he’s paid a week in arrears (our lads were paid today for week ending 27/7) was he meant to submit a time sheet. If he didn’t, or missed the deadline due to being off his hours may not have been processed.

Has he been given a statement of particulars? This is a legal requirment.

Swipe left for the next trending thread