Salary sacrifice

[Ianimp]

Hi 

Not sure im on the right page but hopefully you can help

Our employer asked ll employees that hadnt been furloughed to take a 20% salary sacrifice for 3 months and we signed to except this and full payment would be returned this December,

They are now saying that they cant pay these monies back to us, is there anything we can do

 

Thanks

[Emmzzi]

I don't follow what has happened. So more information please.

 

 

Were you expecting your pay to be back to 100% from December?

 

Or does the paperwork say you get backpay in December?

 

What did you sign, or have sent to you? What does it say?

 

I am not sure what salary sacrifice has to do with it - that's usually about pensions/ company cars etc. I think this may be pay cut, or pay delay?

[Ianimp]

Hi

Thank you for your reply and help, we signed to except 3 months 20% salary sacrifice back beginning of the year and that it would be paid back in full in December this year, nothing to do with pensions 

Thanks

Ian

[Emmzzi]

Well, you could take them to small claims court. But if they haven't got the money, they haven't got it.

 

Is there a union?

 

Also I'd get job hunting.

[honeybee13]

To add to what Emmzzi said, did they specifically use the words 'salary sacrifice' in the documentation please? This isn't what I understand by salary sacrifice either.

 

HB

[honeybee13]

Fwiw, where my OH works they call it a voluntary salary reduction. He thinks salary sacrifice is an HMRC term.

 

HB

[Ianimp]

Hi

Yes salary sacrifice at 20% of our monthly salary for 3 months and then paid back in full in December 

Thanks again

Ian

[honeybee13]

Well, I'm being pedantic but I think they're using the wrong term.

 

Link to the Money Advice Service on salary sacrifice below. It doesn't sound like what you're doing.

 

https://www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/en/articles/salary-sacrifice-schemes

 

HB

[Manxman in exile]

I agree that what you describe is not a "salary sacrifice".  It may be that your employer has heard of the term and mistakenly thought it applied here.

 

It seems to me that you and your colleagues (who weren't furloghed) simply agreed to be paid less because of the current Covid circumstances.

 

What do you actually mean by:  "... and full payment would be returned this December"?  What did you actually agree to?  You obviously think it means that in December you would get backdated arrears of the 20% you had previously foregone, but it could equally mean that they would just start paying your full salary again, and the 20% you weren't paid has gone forever.

 

(PS - I notice in a couple of other posts you mention: "... that it would be paid back in full in December this year..."  I'm afraid that is still not necessarily the same as your employer agreeing to pay arrears.  What is the exact wording of what you have agreed to?  Not what you think it says - what it actually says.)

 

Depending on (1) what your contract of employment says about your wage/salary and (2) what you actually agreed to in terms of a wage/salary reduction, then you are entitled to be paid whatever has been agreed.

 

But if your employer simply can't afford to pay you because of Covid etc, then they can't afford to pay you with money they don't have.

 

Are you in a union?