This guide is maintained as a current resource for July 2026 and covers only the laws of England and Wales. Information is for general guidance, not legal advice. Consult a qualified solicitor for advice specific to your situation.
Are you owed money by your employer? Learn how to calculate your entitlements, raise a formal dispute, use Acas conciliation, and navigate the tribunal process to recover what you are owed.
Unpaid wages and holiday pay disputes are common issues in UK workplaces. When an employer fails to pay the money an employee or worker is legally entitled to, the law provides structured routes to seek recovery. These include informal resolution with the employer, statutory procedures through Acas Early Conciliation, and formal claims to an Employment Tribunal. This article explains the legal framework governing unpaid wages and holiday pay, outlines the practical steps to make a claim, clarifies relevant time limits, and describes potential outcomes and remedies. The guidance uses clear legal terminology and is designed to be accessible to both members of the public and solicitors.
Understanding Your Rights to Pay and Holiday Entitlement
What Counts as Unpaid Wages?
Unpaid wages encompass any contractual remuneration your employer owes you for work already done. This can include:
- Basic wages or salary
- Overtime, bonuses or commission
- Final pay on termination
- Unpaid holiday pay (for leave you have earned but not been paid for)
- Other contractual pay elements such as sick pay or allowances, where specified in your contract.
Holiday Pay Entitlements
Employees and workers accrue statutory holiday leave under the Working Time Regulations 1998. In most cases, this equals 5.6 weeks' paid annual leave per year. If you have taken holiday but not been paid for it, you may have a right to seek payment for that holiday as part of an underpayment claim.
Holiday pay can be claimed either as a breach of statutory rights under the Working Time Regulations or as an unlawful deduction from wages under section 13 of the Employment Rights Act 1996.
Practical Steps to Claim Unpaid Wages or Holiday Pay
1. Check Your Payslips and Contract
The first step is to carefully review your payslips and employment contract. Verify the hours worked, pay rates, holiday entitlement and how holiday pay is calculated. Use payslips to calculate what you believe you are owed.
2. Raise the Issue with Your Employer
Contact your employer in writing, explaining clearly what has not been paid and why you believe the payment is due. Request a response within a reasonable period, for example seven days. This written record demonstrates that you attempted to resolve the issue informally.
3. Follow Internal Grievance Procedures
If informal contact fails, consider raising a formal grievance through your employer's internal procedure. A grievance creates a documented trail showing you pursued resolution before escalating to external mechanisms.
4. Contact Acas and Start Early Conciliation
Before making a claim to an Employment Tribunal, you must notify Acas (Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service) of your intention to bring a claim. Acas will offer Early Conciliation, a free service in which a conciliator contacts both you and your employer to try to reach a settlement without tribunal proceedings. Early Conciliation can pause the tribunal time limit, which can be crucial if your deadline is approaching.
Bringing a Claim to an Employment Tribunal
1. Time Limits for Tribunal Claims
There are strict time limits for bringing a claim to an Employment Tribunal:
- For unpaid wages or underpaid holiday pay, you normally have 3 months minus one day from the date the payment was due or the date of the last underpayment in a series.
Where there have been multiple underpayments, the three‑month period usually runs from the date of the most recent non‑payment or deduction.
2. Series Claims and Historical Pay
If your employer has repeatedly underpaid you, you may bring a single claim for a series of deductions. Traditionally, a “series” could be broken if more than three months passed between deductions. However, a recent Supreme Court decision has clarified that a series of unlawful deductions is not automatically broken by gaps or lawful payments in between, making it easier to aggregate underpayments into one claim.
The Deduction from Wages (Limitation) Regulations 2014 historically limited claims for unlawful deductions from wages to a maximum of two years from the date of the most recent deduction, though some tribunal decisions have challenged how this limit operates for holiday pay.
3. Submitting Your Tribunal Claim (ET1)
Once Early Conciliation concludes and you receive an Acas Early Conciliation Certificate, you can complete and submit the ET1 claim form to the Employment Tribunal. This form requires you to set out:
- The details of your employment
- Which payments you say are owed (for example unpaid wages or holiday pay)
- How you calculated those amounts
- Any evidence you have such as payslips, contracts and correspondence.
4. Tribunal Hearing and Remedies
If your claim proceeds to a hearing, the tribunal will consider whether your employer owes the money and, if so, how much. If successful, the tribunal can order payment of your unpaid wages or holiday pay. It may also award interest on the sums owed or additional compensation for financial loss directly caused by the non‑payment.
Alternative or Supplementary Legal Routes
Civil Court Claims for Contractual Pay
For some types of unpaid pay or breach of contract, you may be able to bring a claim in the civil courts (small claims or county court) for contractual losses. This may allow claims for periods beyond the three‑month tribunal limit, as civil claims typically have longer limitation periods (commonly up to six years for contractual breaches). However, employment tribunals are generally the correct forum for statutory pay claims including holiday pay.
Insolvency or Redundancy Payment Service
If your employer has gone into insolvency, there are statutory schemes (such as the Redundancy Payments Service) that may cover some unpaid wages or holiday pay. Contact the relevant government department for details in that scenario.
Common Questions
Can I claim after I have left the job?
Yes. You can still start a claim for unpaid wages or holiday pay after employment ends, provided you act within the applicable time limits.
Do I need a solicitor?
You do not need a solicitor to bring a tribunal claim. Many individuals represent themselves. However, legal advice can help clarify complex issues and improve preparation, especially where the claim involves technical pay calculations or series of underpayments.
What evidence will help my claim?
Useful evidence includes your employment contract, payslips, timesheets, bank statements, correspondence about pay, and records of holiday taken.
Key Takeaways
Unpaid wages and holiday pay claims are covered by statutory protections in England and Wales. If your employer has failed to pay what you are owed, you should first check your pay records, raise the issue internally, then contact Acas for Early Conciliation before submitting an Employment Tribunal claim within the statutory time limits. Tribunals can order payment of wages and holiday pay, including interest, and recent case law has supported broader claims for historical underpayments. Alternative civil court routes may apply in some contractual scenarios, but tribunal claims remain the primary mechanism for statutory pay disputes. Acting promptly and gathering clear evidence strengthens your claim and helps ensure your rights are effectively enforced.
