No More Company Communication Expenses Next Month. What Now?

According to the Labor Standards Act, any remuneration paid to the worker in the form of wages, salaries, or any other name is defined as "wages." The remuneration for labor includes not only what the worker has directly done but also what is paid for the reproduction of labor power and for maintaining the worker's livelihood. If the remuneration is not properly paid, the worker has the right to claim it.

 

If there is an obligation to pay through a collective agreement, employment rules, regardless of the name, it is all included in wages. For example, transportation expenses, communication expenses, gift expenses, birthday congratulations, individual pension support, group insurance premiums, etc. are all considered wages. Also, if the payment of various allowances is directly related to the provision of labor, it can be considered as wages. On the other hand, payments made in customary, friendly, arbitrary, and gracious sense cannot be considered as wages. Examples include marriage congratulatory money, condolences for illness, condolences for family deaths, and so on.

 

Even if there is no obligation to pay through a collective agreement, employment rules, employment contract, if a certain amount has been paid regularly over a long period of time, it is considered as wages. If the company suddenly stops paying communication expenses that it has been paying every month due to financial difficulties, it is no different from withholding wages from the worker without their consent. If the company does not want to pay, it must negotiate with the worker to change the working conditions. As mentioned above, if wages are not paid, the worker has the right to claim it from the company.

 

On the other hand, if the company delays payment of wages, late payment interest will be imposed. If an employee resigns, the company must pay wages (including severance pay and unpaid wages) within 14 days. Late payment interest does not apply within 14 days. However, from the 15th day onwards, a late payment interest of 20% per year will be charged. If you are still employed, a late payment interest of 6% per year will be charged for unpaid wages. Please refer to the following formula for calculating late payment interest:

 

Late payment interest = unpaid amount x annual interest rate (%) x number of days delayed / 365 days

*20% annual interest rate after resignation

**6% annual interest rate while still employed

 

If the wage is not paid, you must claim it within the statute of limitations period of three years. You cannot claim it after three years. The payment period for wages is three years from the payment date, for bonuses it is from the date of issuance (or payment), for unused annual leave allowances it is the day after the right to claim for paid annual leave has expired (the day after the day on which annual leave cannot be used), and for severance pay it is from the date of retirement. Therefore, you must not forget to claim it within three years in order to receive it.

 

There is a way to suspend the three-year statute of limitations. Filing a claim with a labor inspector from the Ministry of Employment and Labor or reporting it to the police is not a way to suspend the statute of limitations. Although it is not a reason for suspending the statute of limitations, filing a claim with the Ministry of Employment and Labor can be quite effective. The reasons for suspension of statute of limitations for payment of wages include filing a lawsuit, seizure (provisional attachment), and, provisional disposition,

 

 

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