13 Jul What do I do if my employer owes me pay?
If you have entered into an employment relationship, you are legally owed compensation. According to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), as soon as you provide services for your employer, you are legally obligated to receiving wages. Whether that be provided in salary or hourly pay, entering an employment relationship guarantees consistent and entitled compensation. But what if your employer hasn’t been paying you? There are a few options that could help you to receive what is owed to you.
Before filing a claim or taking the situation to court, draft a letter that asks for the money that is owed to you. If your employer refuses or ignores your efforts to collect the payment, you could reach out to an employment lawyer, file an unpaid wage claim to the Ministry of Labour, or take your case to the Small Claims Court.
If you wish to contact a lawyer, KCY at LAW would assist you in collecting damages. Kathy Chittley-Young would help you file an unpaid wage claim to receive pay in lieu of notice. Not providing compensation is a violation of your employment relationship, and therefore equates to a constructive dismissal claim. Thus, the damages you would collect would be legally explicated as receiving “pay in lieu of notice”. In this case, Kathy Chittley-Young could be retained as your litigator, and she would negotiate the damages that are owed.
Another method to collect your owed compensation would be to bring an unpaid wage complaint to the Ministry of Labour. Filing a claim with the Minister of Labour about an unpaid wage has no added cost. This may be the more practical method if your employer owns a small business. If the employer cannot provide payments owed to you because their business is in financial trouble, this could potentially be more cost efficient for the employee in the long-run.
The third option is bringing your case to the Small Claims Court to sue your employer. Small Claims Court handles civil claims where a payment under $35,000 is owed between two private parties. This method can be done on your own and does not require external help. Your responsibilities would include filing a Statement of Claim which includes listing the payments that are owed to you, representing yourself in this court, and then hiring a lawyer to summon the employer. Summoning your employer provides the opportunity to occupy their assets equivalent to what is monetarily owed.
If you have not received payments from your employer and wish to collect damages, please contact KCY at LAW by filling in an online consultation request or contact us by phone at 905-639-0999 to book your consultation today.