employee loan recovery

[lch09]

My wife worked for a building company who allowed her to have work done on our home and then work off what was owed (she was actually encouraged by the owners to do it). So we had a few bits and bobs done and everything was fine. Then one day they made her redundant, she hadn't done anything wrong, just 'wasn't needed anymore'.
They are now demanding full payment (around �5k) which we just don't have.
They have asked for full payment within the next month or will take action against her.
Can they do this?

No agreement was agreed/signed other than a verbal agreement to 'work it off'.
They made her redundant without any notice.
She was happily working extra hours to repay the loan prior to redundancy.

Thanks for any help and advice.

[cassa333]

How long had she worked there? Does she have a case for either unfare dismisal or for redundancy money?

Is the �5000 a realistic value of the work done? and has any been paid off?

[bednobs]

this is a very crappy way of going about things, both by your wife and the cmpany. if she had nothing written down, how would she have known when she had done enough hours to cover the work? or would they just have made her work forever?
i think they probably can make her pay for the work done (although i am not a law person) as she has nothing in writing that is was an agreement to work it off, they could easily say that there was no such agreement and that you have had the work done and simply refused to pay if they felt so inclined

[lch09]

Hi, she worked there for 2 years.
The �5k is a realistic value, we don't dispute that.
Some had already been worked off, the �5k is the balance when made redundant.

I'm not sure if she does or not, she was called into the office, told and then let go.
Thanks

[lch09]

A spreadsheet log was kept and worked hours deducted from the total. We have all the old payslips/workings showing the extra hours that would be deducted from the total, to help prove it was being worked off.