Payslips can be provided electronically

In Leedham v Royal Mail Group Ltd, the EAT has upheld an employment tribunal’s decision that the requirement in S.8 of the Employment Rights Act 1996, that a worker be ‘given’ an itemised pay statement by an employer, does not require physical delivery and can be satisfied by the provision of electronic access.

The question is whether the worker has been afforded access to the relevant information in a way that enables him or her to scrutinise and, if necessary, challenge it.

In the above case, from June 2023, the employer switched from paper payslips to a system whereby payslips could be accessed and viewed by employees online.

The EAT held that the meaning of ‘given’ in S.8 ERA was to be determined purposively, having regard to the need to avoid impracticable or commercially unrealistic outcomes.

However, the EAT emphasised that compliance with S.8 is fact-sensitive. A system that, whether by reason of cost, technical barriers or other constraints, prevents an individual worker from obtaining their payslip would not satisfy the statutory purpose.