Possible to skip notice period?

[Slamhamster]

I started work on the 17th October for a small travel agent, but after a number of incidents it looks like I need to get out asap as they appear in dire financial straits.

 

1. After six weeks they are still uable to provide a PAYE reference, despite daily chasing.
   
2. Whilst contacting HMRC on 29th Nov I found they have still not received a P46 to inform them I have started work and still have me listed as unemployed.
   
3. Their landlord has visited the shop, shouting the odds and demanding arrears paid in full or will start eviction proceedings - he also mentioned their references hadn't checked out but didn't care as long as he got his money.
   
4. They frequently argue with utilities over size of bills.
   

The biggest stumbling block has been getting paid. After informing them in writing that I had concerns about the HMRC status and the lack of PAYE info, I requested confirmation that the wages would be paid on time, as well as a copy of my payslip as I need it to finalise a housing benefit claim. As I was short term unemployed I didn't get rent run-ons or back to work grants so we'd struggled a lot - a timely payment was absolutely essential to pay the rent etc.

 

I was given a payslip on 28th November and told the money would be in on the 29th. It wasn't paid in, so I called into the office (as I had friday as a holiday) to find out why, only to be told the accountant had sent a cheque (which they couldn't produce) but it should be sorted in 3 or 4 days.

 

I pointed out this was not what we had agreed upon, and that my landlord was the type to look for new tennants if a payment was late. They then made a range of contradictory excuses but eventually promised to pay in £500 on 29th and the rest on the 30th.

When nothing had gone in on 29th (payday mentioned in T&C and employment offer) , I contacted them again to chase payment and the excuses came thick and fast, one of their on-line banks was down, then they were juggling funds about, then they insisted the 'in-hand' element was one-month and I was only due a smaller amount (rather than the two-weeks in hand mentioned in their offer of employment, and contradicting the payslip they had issued)

 

After mentioning I'd tell the landlord he was unlikely to get paid they suddenly had funds available to pay the wages in full and transferred them within two hours.

 

When started the job I did get a copy of the statement of particulars of employment that I refused to sign as the holidays were below the statutory minimum and I had issues with a couple of other elements - a new one was supposedly being drafted but never handed to me.

In the initial terms it mentions a notice period of 1 week after a month of employment. I'd need to give one week notice in writing. At this point I feel the working relationship has broken down irreparably and would prefer to resign with immediate effect as I don't think they'll be solvent for long.

If I resign without notice could I risk losing the wages held in-hand for the first two weeks?

[becky2585]

You could risk it, yes, but there's always the county court to claim them back. The risk there is that they are insolvent and don't actually have the money to pay you!

 

As for resigning without notice, I would do it if it was me - they have fundamentally breached your contract by not paying you wages, so you aren't obliged to work a full notice period.

[Slamhamster]

It gets better - story so far:

 

I applied for the post of Web Designer at Xxxx Ltd via the Universal Jobmatch website and attended a job interview on Saturday 28th September at their offices on Xxxxx Road.

 

I was offered the job on the 9th October, at £X per hour for 35 hours per week. The offer letter also mentioned this would be paid monthly, with two weeks in hand. It also mentioned something not mentioned in the initial job offer – using the flight booking system to work alongside airport staff and check-ins.

 

Despite concerns over the unmentioned extra duties (and the inevitable lengthy benefit sanctions if I'd not accepted), I accepted the job and started work on the 17th October and promptly encountered a pressing problem – the equipment supplied for the job consisted of three elderly computers, none of which worked. As such I had to take I my own laptop and use my own software to carry out my duties.

 

As I had not been unemployed for very long, I did not qualify for housing benefit run-ons or a back to work grant so we had borrow money from family to make ends meet. We were also able to take a £Xxxx advance from the employer as otherwise we would have been without income for six weeks.

 

In order to sort out my child and working tax credit claims, I needed a PAYE reference. I was assured that this had been applied for by the accountant.

 

After two weeks, the employer conceded we needed to get a new computer but nothing ever materialised on this front. Despite daily chasing, the PAYE reference was still in the post, with the accountant, or being emailed over tomorrow.

 

When my Statement of Particulars of Employment arrived, I found the job specs had changed again. It stated I needed business insurance for my car, had to be prepared to work anywhere in the UK and also overseas – this was not mentioned in the Job Ad, Interview or Job Offer. It also failed to meet minimum statutory requirements in some areas such as holidays so I refused to sign. The employer agreed to revise the terms but a new contract never appeared.

 

My concerns rose again after the landlord for the property turned up, demanding payment by 3.30pm the same day or he would begin eviction proceedings. Firstly, I had been told they owned the property – secondly, it gave the appearance that they were struggling to pay their bills.

 

A while later my employer admittedly they used to have an office in the Xxxxxx Centre, but had been made bankrupt as a private individual by their failure to pay the rent. She then confided they found it lucky she had rented that office in her own name rather than the name of the company, as it allowed them to keep going.

 

The employer had a habit of turning up late, and tended to leave me to my own devices. I had the overwhelming impression they just wanted a website on the cheap and would be expendable once it was up and running.

 

After I had been there for a month, I was told they now had my PAYE reference. When I looked at the letter it turned out to be the Company UTR Reference, which I think has to do with Corporation Tax but nothing to do with PAYE. I would have expected an employer to know the difference. I rang HMRC only to find they could not help with the PAYE situation as they still had me down as unemployed – the employer had not submitted a P46 to inform them I was an employee.

 

My employer assured me the accountant had sent off the paperwork and were awaiting the reply by email. Or by post. Or was at home.

 

I was then told it had arrived and given their UTR reference. Again.

 

As it was now getting near payday and PAYE information was still not forthcoming, I sent an email on the 21st November explaining my financial situation, explaining how late payment could result in unpaid rent and end up as living in a hostel with no money and three kids without Christmas presents. I also queried the lack of movement regarding PAYE info and so on – the last paragraph of my email read as follows:

 

“If you could please confirm that you have indeed registered as an employer, have submitted the P46, have a payroll system in place, confirm that you have applied for a PAYE reference with enough lead time to have everything in place in time for Friday 29th (and that the wages will be cleared in my bank on that date - along with a payslip as confirmation the same day), it would be greatly appreciated.”

 

I received the following reply:

 

“We asked our accountant in London to apply for the PAYE. XXXXX Limited was set up 5 weeks ago and you are our first staff. So far as i know our accountant has applied for the PAYE. We sent a copy of your P46 to our accountant. It is up to my accountant to sort the PAYE out for us and you will received a payslip at the end of the month. If you want us to write to the council to confirm you are working for Xxxxxx Ltd we will be quit happy to do so. Looking at your action below it worry me you have to go this far and did not believe Xxxx and l have been telling you the truth.”

 

Despite this I had to keep pushing for a payslip – which I was finally given on the 28th November along with a verbal assurance the money would be in the account by lunchtime on the 29th (which I had taken as a holiday in order to take my partner to hospital). I was also told the accountant was based in Leeds, which wasn't part of London last time I checked.

 

On the 29th, no money was paid in. A closer look at the payslip listed the payment method as cheque, yet no cheque had been issued. A further call to HMRC again showed me listed as unemployed, no P46 received. My partner and I called in at the office to find out what had happened – I have suspected Aspergers and a tendency to be too trusting and quiet, wheras my partner is a gobby hardened cynic with a zero-tolerance approach to bull****. She was awesome to watch in action as she ran the gauntlet of contradictory excuses and eventually the employer caved in and agreed to pay £500 by bank transfer by 5.00pm on the 29th and the remainder on the 30th.

 

By 5.00pm on the 29th, still no money paid in. When we rang them two or three times and got additional excuses, including juggling funds in different accounts, then something to do with one on-line bank being temporarily down but the money would all be in on the 30th.

 

On the 30th my partner rang to chase the money again. The employer tried to convince her I was only entitled to £XXX as it was one-month in hand, so I was only due two weeks pay less the £XXX advance. This directly contradicted both the issued payslip and the offer of employment. When my partner pointed this out, the employer claimed we were being unfair and hung up the phone.

 

The employer rang back later, claiming it could take two or three days to sort out and again claiming we were being very unfair, presumably because being stressed beyond belief and worrying that we're being ripped off and may lose our home as a result, leaving us destitute and homeless for Christmas isn't that much to worry about. Again there were several calls that day with different excuses.

 

We did mention that we could contact their landlord and let him know about their financial woes, and suddenly the boss dramatically changed tack and said it would be paid today. The full owed amount of £XXX.XX was paid into my bank along with a sheepish phone call to confirm it had been paid.

 

As a result of the above I have no confidence in the employer and feel the working relationship is irreparably compromised, It seems obvious they just wanted a cheap website building, would never buy the necessary equipment to carry out my duties and I have no confidence at all that I will ever see two weeks in-hand, let alone a weeks notice if I work it. The stress of this position has put heavy strain on my relationship and things can't continue as they are and I can't see any viable alternative to resigning my position.

Latest News – Dismissed for Misconduct on 01/12/2013

 

As of 1st December, it appears I have been sacked for Misconduct, allegedly for breach of contract for contravening Section 24, regarding confidentiality of information. It is claimed that as I told my partner about an argument they had with their landlord regarding non-payment of rent in a public area of the shop, I had breached confidentiality. Naturally I dispute this, as any member of the public entering the shop would have been in no doubt as to the financial situation. Bizarrely the initial email mentioned I was being given one weeks notice and seemed to expect me to work that notice.

 

When I telephoned to clarify the matter, I was then told it was because my partner had threatened to tell the landlord they were refusing to pay my wages – in other words Xxxxx Ltd were already in breach of contract by refusing to pay, but threatening to tell someone else they were breaking contract (by not adhering to their own terms) is a sackable offence . Please note the landlord wasn't informed anyway – so I appear to have been dismissed based on hearsay. I promptly received another email telling me I was now banned from the premises due to Misconduct - so no notice period of a week anymore.

 

To be perfectly honest, I suspect they only reason I've been dismissed for Misconduct is petty spite, as they are no doubt aware it can cause significant problems with unemployment benefits.

 

I sent a copy of the following email to the employer:

 

“WITHOUT PREJUDICE

 

Thank you for your email stating your intentions.

 

Please be advised that I had already contacted ACAS prior to termination regarding constructive dismissal with the full intention of resigning on Monday - as you were in breach of contract when you failed to pay on the due date. Iwill be proceeding with the case against you if the outstanding wages are not paid in full within 14 days of this message.

 

As you are claiming I am breach of contract for informing my partner you had an argument with your landlord, you know as well as I do that this is nothing more than a spurious attempt to score a point. Any member of the public could have walked in on that confrontation, so I think you’d have quite a job to claim it was privileged information that I should have with-held from my partner. Other than my partner, no third party was given access to this information.

 

Failure to change the notice of termination to a notice of redundancy also leaves you open to a case of Unfair Dismissal, as you are making the judgement based solely on hearsay and without any evidence to back up your claim. As such, I demand a written apology and a Notice of Redundancy forthwith.

 

At this time I have not released details of your unethical behaviour to Xxx, Xxx, Xxx, Xxx or the Xxx. If you persist in acting in an unethical manner I may resolve to take this step and notify such parties as they may be interested in the behaviour of their trading partners.

 

Please note that I am also asserting my rights to be identified as author of your website with sole creative copyright and will only transfer said copyright to yourselves once the outstanding monies have been paid in full. I hereby instruct that you take down said website and should you refuse to do so, I reserve the right to levy additional daily charges and/or sue for damages for any period in which you continue to use my work in breach of copyright.

 

Have a nice day.

 

Xxxxx X Xxxx”

 

So far the only replay has been:

 

“Dear Xxxxx

We have received your email and we are passing on our solicitors.

Xxxxx”

 

ACAS is on the case, so what happens next depends on their advice - they don't know about the summary dismissal without any disciplinary procedure yet.

Edited December 1, 2013 by Slamhamster

[Pusillanimous]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]48020[/ATTACH]The week's notice is a statutory obligation for those who have worked less than one month, which is where that comes from.

 

As you have worked there less than the statutory minimum to qualify for employment rights, the "dismissal for misconduct" is meaningless.

 

They sound like a bunch of crooks, so report them for trading whilst insolvent. Send them a bill for wages owed and claim it through the Employment Tribunal (you can get remission on the fees if you are below a certain income level). Do this straight away. I attach the remission application form. If they go into insolvency don't forget to register IPR over your website and claim for outstanding debts.

[Slamhamster]

I have been informed they intend to pay the outstanding balance on the next payday, which will be Friday 27th December. It doesn't appear that I can put in a tribunal claim for unfair deductions until that date has passed, although I have sent them a bill for wages owed. ACAS weren't much help really, as it was less than two years they didn't seem to think I could do anything yet.

 

I have reported them for trading whilst insolvent, and also pointed out in that complaint that from the records I'd been able to obtain via credit searches etc (which revealed a nice list of phoenix companies), one of them appears to have been acting as a company secretary during the bankruptcy restriction period, after telling the court that they were unemployed.

[Pusillanimous]

Well done. Hopefully that will put them out of action and protect others.