Late wage and expenses

[dayzee_101]

I am not really sure what to do here, and I am looking for advice.

 

I was interviewed and hired by a company called M with whom I thought I would be working for. M is based in the US, and due to that I was told when I got my contract I would be contracted to B. B pays my salary and that is pretty much it. I am PAYE.

 

I have worked at M for 2 years, and the entire time I have been there I frequently have to chase my invoice to be paid to B. B the HR company chases the invoice every so often when it is late, but of course once the invoice is paid late, so is my wage. Once again I will be paid late this month. Which will result in bounced direct debit fees. (I am on 25K a year in London, I cannot save, I wish I could!!).

 

I can keep chasing M and B to pay me, but of course if M have not paid B, I will not be paid. What can I do? My contract with B says I should be paid before the last day of the month. Should I be raising this with them? Or M? My contract is with B, but outside of them paying my wage I have nothing to do with them.

 

 

Secondly. M pays my expenses which average around 150 a month. On the 20th of the month, I send in my expenses and wait for them to be paid. And wait. And wait, and wait. On average it takes 3 to 4 months for my expenses to be paid which is starting to have a very negative impact on my finances. Especially as sometimes there is an international trip in those expenses that I need to wait a few months to be reimbursed for. A new system was put in place recently which means rather than wiring me the money, they will now send me a cheque. Ok fine. Until I got the cheque and it is in USD!! so now it costs me to cash this cheque, and then I need to wait 4 to 8 weeks to clear!!

 

So here I am, with a late pay, and expenses god knows when they will be paid and I have no idea what to do. My boss at M does not really care. B is only concerned about my salary and all they can do is chase M.

 

So any suggestions on anything I can do? No I am not in a union either.

[becky2585]

Are you an employee or self employed? It sounds like your employer has a rather bizarre arrangement!

 

If they fail to pay altogether then you can issue a court case, but it depends who your true employer is. Do you have a contract?

 

Unfortunately whilst you can sue for no money received, it's difficult to get an employer to pay on time if they're determined not to! Which leaves you with the option of raising a formal grievance, and if it's still not addressed, resigning and claiming constructive dismissal.

 

Practically speaking, it may be time to hunt for a better job!

[dayzee_101]

I think I am an employee. All my tax and national insurance is taken out of my pay by B. I do have a contract but it is with B. So I guess I am employed by B.

 

Looking for a new job is very high on my agenda, but until I find something new, I need to work out how I can get paid on time, and my expenses paid more promptly.

[bedlington83]

I think I am an employee. All my tax and national insurance is taken out of my pay by B. I do have a contract but it is with B. So I guess I am employed by B.

 

Then what is the invoice that you talked about in the original post: "B the HR company chases the invoice every so often when it is late, but of course once the invoice is paid late, so is my wage. ".

[transient]

Pretty simple, she works for a company that is based in the US but does not have a presence here other than a subsiduary. The subsiduary wont pay the OP until they receive a payment from the US company.

[bedlington83]

Are you sure that's right transient? I agree it could be but the OP describes B as an HR company rather than a subsidiary. The reason for my question is that B sounds a lot like an agency to me.

[becky2585]

Then it's basically tough for B - B cant withhold wages just because A haven't paid them!

 

Have you considered raising a formal complaint (grievance) in writing previously?

[bedlington83]

The agency regulations were where my reasoning was going (if B is indeed an agency - it may not be of course)

[dayzee_101]

I am not sure which B is. They advertise themselves as "the premium company for international consulting".

 

HR may not be the right word. I have a contract with B with no end date. B also has a contract with M which is renewed yearly. B only pays me, nothing more. They never get involved with anything else, so I guess HR is not the right word for what they are.

[bedlington83]

I am not sure which B is. They advertise themselves as "the premium company for international consulting".

 

B only pays me, nothing more. They never get involved with anything else, so I guess HR is not the right word for what they are.

I think they are probably an agency, at least for the purposes of the agency regulations. If they don't get involved in anything other than paying you (when they can be bothered!) who is doing the invoicing? Is it that B invoices M but doesn't pay you your wage until after M has paid the invoice?

 

Do you complete time sheets and, if so, who do you submit them to, B or M?

[dayzee_101]

I think they are probably an agency, at least for the purposes of the agency regulations. If they don't get involved in anything other than paying you (when they can be bothered!) who is doing the invoicing? Is it that B invoices M but doesn't pay you your wage until after M has paid the invoice?

 

Do you complete time sheets and, if so, who do you submit them to, B or M?

 

I don't complete time sheets and I'm paid the same amount no matter what hours I work. B sends M an invoice and B will not pay me until they have received money from M. So I guess they are an agency then?

 

Sorry I'm new to all this. I've never been involved in non-standard employment.

[bedlington83]

It doesn't make them an agency but they certainly sound like one to me. Do you have any documentation from when you first came into contact with B?

[dayzee_101]

I do. I've got my initial contract. But that's pretty much it

[bedlington83]

In the covering letter, or the contract itself, is there wording along the lines of "B is acting as an employment business...".

 

Does the contract say anything about supplying services at M?

[becky2585]

I don't think B is an agency at all. I think A is a parent company and there's a bizarre quasi secondment arrangement. It's possible to have different company entities in each country.

 

I would ignore A in it's entirety and concentrate entirely on B. They are your employer, they pay your wages, they're who you work for.

[transient]

I don't think B is an agency at all. I think A is a parent company and there's a bizarre quasi secondment arrangement. It's possible to have different company entities in each country.

 

I would ignore A in it's entirety and concentrate entirely on B. They are your employer, they pay your wages, they're who you work for.

 

Exactly it is very common