A pay dispute starts with arithmetic and legal basis. Work out what should have been paid, what was actually paid, why the difference arose and which contractual or statutory rule the employer relies on.
Use this guide to separate the facts, the legal route and the practical remedy. Workplace disputes often involve more than one right, so keep each strand distinct.
Key points
- Identify the exact decision, event or omission before choosing a legal label.
- Ask who made the decision and which employer policy, contract term or statutory rule is relied on.
- Preserve contemporaneous evidence and the employer’s reasons before memories and records change.
- Protect Acas and tribunal time limits even while an internal process is continuing.
Diagnosis
First: what exactly happened?
Work out which route fits the facts before deciding what to ask the employer to do. Similar workplace problems can use different legal tests.
| What happened? | What to check |
|---|---|
| Wages are missing or short | Compare hours/rate/contract with payslip and bank payment; identify whether the issue is payroll error, unpaid hours or a disputed entitlement. |
| Money has been deducted | Ask for the statutory, contractual or prior written basis and check special rules such as retail deductions or minimum wage. |
| The employer is recovering an overpayment | A genuine accidental overpayment can usually be recovered, but amount, calculation and repayment method should still be checked. |
| Commission, bonus or holiday pay is disputed | Identify whether the payment is contractual, discretionary, statutory or based on a formula, then test the calculation against the applicable rules. |
Who is responsible?
The employer is responsible for its own employment decisions and processes, even where HR, payroll, occupational health, an external investigator or software supplier is involved. Identify the actual decision-maker and the legal entity that employs you.
Managers and HR may administer a process, but outsourcing advice or relying on a policy does not transfer away the employer’s legal responsibility.
Unpaid hours and overtime
Keep rotas, clocking records, timesheets and messages showing authorised work. A dispute about whether work was required can be as important as the hourly calculation.
Deductions and training costs
An employer needs a recognised legal basis for deductions. A training repayment clause can also raise questions about contract wording, timing, amount and whether it effectively reduces pay below statutory minimums.
Overpayments
Recovery of genuine overpayments is treated differently from an ordinary deduction, but employees should ask for the calculation and propose a manageable plan where immediate recovery would cause hardship.
National minimum wage
Minimum-wage calculations have their own rules about working time and deductions. Enforcement routes can include the state enforcement system as well as individual claims.
Start with the payslip, contract and actual payment.
Identify what should have been paid, what was paid, the pay period, any deduction shown, and the contractual or statutory basis relied on. Keep payslips, timesheets, rota records, commission calculations and bank evidence.
Deductions need a legal or agreed basis.
Acas explains that deductions from wages are only permitted in specified circumstances, for example where required by law, authorised by the contract, agreed in writing beforehand, or to recover an accidental overpayment. Different rules can apply to particular payments and retail deductions.
Raise the discrepancy promptly.
An unexpected deduction can sometimes be a payroll error. Ask the employer to identify the calculation and legal or contractual basis. If it is not corrected, preserve the response and consider the appropriate grievance, Acas or tribunal route.
Check the time limit separately.
Wages and deduction claims can be time-sensitive. As at 9 September 2026, the general employment tribunal time-limit reforms have not yet taken effect for problems occurring before 1 October 2026. Do not wait for a long internal correspondence chain before checking limitation.
Act quickly if pay is wrong.
Raise the discrepancy promptly and ask payroll or the employer for a written calculation. If it is not resolved, a grievance may be appropriate. An unlawful-deduction claim has a strict employment-tribunal time limit, and linked series-of-deductions rules can be technical.
As at 9 September 2026, most tribunal claims with a limitation period starting before 1 October 2026 still use a three-month-minus-one-day limit. From 1 October 2026, most new limitation periods increase to six months minus one day. Do not delay on the assumption that the new rule will rescue an older deadline.
Useful wording.
“Please identify the statutory, contractual or prior written authority for the £[amount] deduction and provide the calculation. I dispute the deduction and reserve my statutory and contractual rights.”
Overpayments are not the same as a penalty deduction.
Employers can generally recover genuine wage overpayments, and the statutory deduction restriction contains an exception for accidental overpayment. That does not mean a large historic overpayment should be recovered without communication. Acas recommends that employers explain the issue and, particularly for large or long-running overpayments, act flexibly and agree a manageable repayment approach.
| Problem | Evidence to get |
|---|---|
| Unexpected deduction | Payslip, bank statement, contract clause and employer explanation. |
| Training repayment | Signed agreement, training invoice/cost, trigger event and calculation. |
| Till/stock shortage | Shortage record, contractual authority and each deduction made. |
| Overpayment recovery | Original payroll error, amount, dates, repayment proposal and correspondence. |
Some deductions have additional limits.
Retail workers have special statutory protection for deductions relating to cash shortages or stock deficiencies: qualifying deductions are generally limited to 10% of gross pay on each payday, except from final wages when employment ends. Separate National Minimum Wage rules can also prevent deductions or payments connected with employment from reducing minimum-wage pay, although the legislation contains specific exceptions.
Training-cost deductions need particular care. A clear prior contractual or written agreement may permit repayment in appropriate circumstances, but the wording, amount, timing and minimum-wage consequences all matter.
A deduction needs a recognised legal basis.
Under the Employment Rights Act 1996, an employer cannot simply deduct money because it believes the employee owes it. Common lawful bases include a deduction required by law, a relevant contractual term, the worker’s prior written agreement, recovery of a genuine accidental overpayment, certain court orders, and properly agreed salary-sacrifice arrangements.
Start by comparing gross pay, the payslip, the contract and the amount actually received. Ask the employer to identify the exact contractual clause or written authority relied on. “Company policy” is not automatically enough if that policy was never incorporated into the contract or otherwise agreed.
What can you realistically ask for?
Choose a remedy that matches the problem. Internal processes can often correct a decision or record; statutory compensation and tribunal remedies depend on the legal claim.
- Correction of payroll and payment of wages owed
- Repayment of unlawful deductions
- Correct payslip or calculation
- Grievance where the issue is not resolved promptly
- Acas/tribunal or state enforcement where the relevant right allows it
Evidence worth keeping
Preserve the original record where possible. A short, dated evidence set is usually more useful than an unstructured dump of documents.
Common employer responses - and what they do not necessarily prove
| Employer says | ConsumerWise view |
|---|---|
| “The handbook lets us deduct whatever you owe.” | The actual contractual wording and statutory deduction rules matter; a broad statement is not enough. |
| “Payroll says it is correct.” | Ask for the calculation and underlying hours/rates rather than treating payroll’s conclusion as evidence. |
| “You were overpaid, so we can take it all from the next wage.” | Recovery may be lawful, but the amount must genuinely be an overpayment and communication/repayment arrangements can still matter. |
| “You are salaried, so extra hours never matter.” | The contract and minimum-wage rules can still matter, particularly where total working time drives effective hourly pay below the legal minimum. |
What to say next
Keep the next response short and issue-led. State the decision you challenge, the evidence or rule you rely on, the specific answer you still need and the remedy you want. If the employer relies on a policy or business reason, ask it to identify the relevant provision and explain how it applies to your facts.
Important overlaps and exceptions
- Holiday pay, sick pay and family pay use their own statutory rules.
- A unilateral pay cut can also be a contract-change dispute.
- Discriminatory pay can engage Equality Act/equal-pay routes, not just deduction law.
What to do
A practical next-step plan
- Write down the event or decision, the date, who made it and the practical impact.
- Identify the legal or contractual right that may apply instead of relying only on the word “unfair”.
- Collect the smallest evidence set that proves the key facts and the employer’s stated reason.
- Use the relevant internal request, grievance, appeal or complaint route and ask for a specific remedy.
- Check Acas and tribunal limitation separately. Do not let a slow internal process cause an external deadline to expire.
Escalation and time limits
Internal procedures can be important, but they do not normally stop an employment tribunal time limit. As at 11 September 2026, most claims whose limitation period starts before 1 October 2026 still use the existing three-month-minus-one-day framework. For most relevant time limits starting on or after 1 October 2026, the period increases to six months minus one day.
Acas early conciliation can affect calculation of the deadline if Acas is notified in time. Some claims use different limits, and interim relief in qualifying dismissal cases can require action within only 7 days. Always check the specific claim rather than applying a general period mechanically.
Official sources
Check the current source material.
ConsumerWise provides general information rather than individual legal advice. Check current rules, dates and eligibility against the official source before acting.