Training Cost Recovery - Agreement never signed.

[Tax law stusent]

Hello,

I have a rather peculiar case.

Background:
- Employee started working in Health & Beauty for a Hotel Spa in 2021.
- At her request, the company agreed to fund a training course of her choosing i.e. Reflexology in order for her to grow her skills.
- Several months pass by and she decides to hand her in notice in 2023.
- The employer has deducted a proportion from her final month's salary, excl. min wage.
- Naturally, the employee reached out to the employer to explain the deduction.
- The employer then produced a Training Agreement dated 2022 to the employee, demanding they pay the rest of the costs owed (no record of it being sent).

Employment Contract:
- Contract was served on the employee, signed and dated by both parties.
- Clause allows deduction from wages for a wider number of costs (training isn't explicitly listed but accept the wider meaning intended behind the clause).
- Training isn't specified anywhere else in the Employment Contract.

Training Agreement:
- The employee states they never received or have seen a copy of this 2022 Training Agreement, which I am inclined to believe...
- The Training Agreement in the opening paragraph requests the acceptance of the terms from the employee but no signature line or area exists for the employee to sign and date. The contract has only been signed and dated by the employer (I found this odd considering industry practice for separate Training Agreements is that a signature from the employee is usually required and particularly in light of their employment contracts).
- The Training Agreement contains several spelling mistakes, suggesting it was drafted in a rush.

"Further to your request to pursue training, I am pleased to inform you that the organisation will agree for you to undertake the training, which the Company is prepared to fund subject to your acceptance the terms set out below".

"The organisation will require you to enter into an agreement to the effect that you repay the training costs on a sliding scale set out in the table below:"


Issue:
- Can an employer demand training costs by relying on a separate Training Agreement that explicitly asks for acceptance of the terms but demands no signature from the employee and which the employee never received?

 

[ethical PR]

I don't know but it's fairly standard that if your employer pays for training you want to do and you leave within a certain period you pay for the cost. After all you/whoever you are posting about are directly benefiting from the training.

 

[fisicx]

@Tax law stusent - is this a homework question?

 

[Newchodge]

I don't know but it's fairly standard that if your employer pays for training you want to do and you leave within a certain period you pay for the cost. After all you/whoever you are posting about are directly benefiting from the training.

They can only recover training costs if there is a formal agreement to do so, Presumably, that is why they have produced this alleged agreement.

ET for unlawful deduction from wages.

 

[Tax law stusent]

They can only recover training costs if there is a formal agreement to do so, Presumably, that is why they have produced this alleged agreement.

ET for unlawful deduction from wages.

Hello Cyndy,

Thank you for this, do you have any statute or case law for 'formal agreements' in relation to training costs to back this up?

 

[Newchodge]

Hello Cyndy,

Thank you for this, do you have any statute or case law for 'formal agreements' in relation to training costs to back this up?

Not without doing a google search

 

[IanSuth]

this does read very similar to the "homework" exercises used in IPD coursework.

In a similar discussion last week the general agreement between HR managers was (from an employer perspective)

If you want to have an agreement like this in place, make it clear up front, make it reasonable with a decent taper on the amount needing repaying otherwise the (legal) costs of fighting in an ET will likely end up exceeding what you get back in training costs

 

[eteb3]

ET for unlawful deduction from wages.

Out of interest, is a common or garden county court claim also valid for breach of contract?

 

[Newchodge]

Out of interest, is a common or garden county court claim also valid for breach of contract?

It can be. which is useful if you miss the 3 month ET deadline, but you have to pay costs in the county court. There are also some things that are reserved to the ET.

 

[CKT]

Hello,

I have a rather peculiar case.

Background:
- Employee started working in Health & Beauty for a Hotel Spa in 2021.
- At her request, the company agreed to fund a training course of her choosing i.e. Reflexology in order for her to grow her skills.
- Several months pass by and she decides to hand her in notice in 2023.
- The employer has deducted a proportion from her final month's salary, excl. min wage.
- Naturally, the employee reached out to the employer to explain the deduction.
- The employer then produced a Training Agreement dated 2022 to the employee, demanding they pay the rest of the costs owed (no record of it being sent).

Employment Contract:
- Contract was served on the employee, signed and dated by both parties.
- Clause allows deduction from wages for a wider number of costs (training isn't explicitly listed but accept the wider meaning intended behind the clause).
- Training isn't specified anywhere else in the Employment Contract.

Training Agreement:
- The employee states they never received or have seen a copy of this 2022 Training Agreement, which I am inclined to believe...
- The Training Agreement in the opening paragraph requests the acceptance of the terms from the employee but no signature line or area exists for the employee to sign and date. The contract has only been signed and dated by the employer (I found this odd considering industry practice for separate Training Agreements is that a signature from the employee is usually required and particularly in light of their employment contracts).
- The Training Agreement contains several spelling mistakes, suggesting it was drafted in a rush.

"Further to your request to pursue training, I am pleased to inform you that the organisation will agree for you to undertake the training, which the Company is prepared to fund subject to your acceptance the terms set out below".

"The organisation will require you to enter into an agreement to the effect that you repay the training costs on a sliding scale set out in the table below:"


Issue:
- Can an employer demand training costs by relying on a separate Training Agreement that explicitly asks for acceptance of the terms but demands no signature from the employee and which the employee never received?

Hi, this depends on the strength of the deductions clause specifically, what an employment judge will consider is whether or not you have a reasonable deductions clause that states what could be deducted. The timing of the deduction would also factor in, majority of deductions upon costs for training and then resignation / termination are typically within a period of 12m following the finding of the training to be able to deduct however this does not always have to be the case.

In my professional opinion and speaking from experience it may be best to concede the cost of the training as the alternative could be far more costly should it be pursued in an employment tribunal, I have reviewed well in excess of 500 employment contracts in my time and I can categorically state that the majority are drafted poorly. There are no isolated incidents within the realm of employment law, a good risk radar in any given procedure would be documentation, audit trail and procedure, if there is fault in any of the above 3 then it is likely that you could face a successful claim.

I would however be open to reviewing the contents of the contract if you are able to send a copy over and I would be happy to explain my findings and be able to better shape my guidance and advice upon reviewing. I would too be able to clearly highlight where the issue resides and what I would expect from a deductions clause and even a compliance perspective.

There are innumerable dependencies and explaining them all would bore you to death. If you drop me a line I can send over my email and I'll take a look.

Thank you for the detailed breakdown it helps no end.

 

[Newchodge]

Hi, this depends on the strength of the deductions clause specifically, what an employment judge will consider is whether or not you have a reasonable deductions clause that states what could be deducted. The timing of the deduction would also factor in, majority of deductions upon costs for training and then resignation / termination are typically within a period of 12m following the finding of the training to be able to deduct however this does not always have to be the case.

In my professional opinion and speaking from experience it may be best to concede the cost of the training as the alternative could be far more costly should it be pursued in an employment tribunal, I have reviewed well in excess of 500 employment contracts in my time and I can categorically state that the majority are drafted poorly. There are no isolated incidents within the realm of employment law, a good risk radar in any given procedure would be documentation, audit trail and procedure, if there is fault in any of the above 3 then it is likely that you could face a successful claim.

I would however be open to reviewing the contents of the contract if you are able to send a copy over and I would be happy to explain my findings and be able to better shape my guidance and advice upon reviewing. I would too be able to clearly highlight where the issue resides and what I would expect from a deductions clause and even a compliance perspective.

There are innumerable dependencies and explaining them all would bore you to death. If you drop me a line I can send over my email and I'll take a look.

Thank you for the detailed breakdown it helps no end.

I think you will find that the OP is the employee, or a friend of an employee.

 

[IanSuth]

I think you will find that the OP is the employee, or a friend of an employee.

True, but what @CKT said (which was the same as me but in longhand) is useful for all the employers here to see - if they are thinking of adding a clause like that to their contracts - do it right or don't bother doing it.

 

[Newchodge]

True, but what @CKT said (which was the same as me but in longhand) is useful for all the employers here to see - if they are thinking of adding a clause like that to their contracts - do it right or don't bother doing it.

That's certainly true. but the advice

In my professional opinion and speaking from experience it may be best to concede the cost of the training as the alternative could be far more costly should it be pursued in an employment tribunal,

Really is not appropriate for the employee!

 

[ethical PR]

They can only recover training costs if there is a formal agreement to do so, Presumably, that is why they have produced this alleged agreement.

ET for unlawful deduction from wages.

Absolutely it needs to be in their employment contract.