AN electrician who was paid just £2,500 for more than six months of work has been awarded over £33,600 after a tribunal condemned his employer’s treatment as “reprehensible”.
Joshua Masefield resigned from I.C.E Electrical Limited in June after the company failed to pay his full wages or pass on deductions for income tax and social security.
The Jersey Employment and Discrimination Tribunal heard that losing his employment also prevented him from completing certain electrical qualifications linked to work experience.
I.C.E Electrical did not submit a response to Mr Masefield’s claims, entitling him to judgment in default. It was notified of the hearing to determine his award but did not seek permission to attend.
The electrician began working for the firm in January 2024, agreeing an hourly rate of £17 and a guaranteed 40-hour week.
Despite repeated requests, he was never given a written contract. Payslips became sporadic during 2025 and stopped altogether after November.
From December 2025, the company failed to pay his full weekly wage. Over more than 28 weeks, occasional payments totalling £2,500 left him £14,341 short in net wages.
Throughout his employment, he had been told that deductions for tax and social security were being passed to Revenue Jersey. However, he was subsequently told that no payments had been made after May 2025.
The judgment identified £2,244 in social-security deductions and £7,931.20 in income-tax deductions, stating that he was entitled to credits for those sums.
Tribunal chair Advocate Dr Elena Moran found that the unpaid wages and failure to remit contributions amounted to a fundamental breach of his contract, establishing constructive unfair dismissal.
“The employer’s conduct has been reprehensible, especially the non-payment of wages and non-remittance of contributions,” she said.
She awarded the maximum 12 weeks’ compensation for unfair dismissal, increased by 25% because of the employer’s conduct, bringing that element to £10,200.
The overall £33,611 award also covered unpaid wages, holiday and notice pay, and compensation for the absence of a written contract and payslips.
The company was ordered to pay within 14 days of the judgment, dated 1 October.
