I was unjustly fired, Can i get my employer in trouble for paying me "under the table"?

Question

My employer wrongfully accused me of stealing money from the drawer. And she told my new empolyer that i was fired for stealing from the business. Since this is mest up i want to get back at her. I was being paid under the table, and i am aware this is illegal, but not my choice i needed work. I just want to get her into trouble with some feds or somthing. What can i do?.. Thanks

Answer 1

This happens all the time. Are you in the USA, the UK?

If the USA then there is a form you can file. Read this Web site: http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=99921,00.html

Presumably your "employer" considered you to be, and perhaps convinced you that you were, an independent contractor. Therefore he did not deduct income tax withholding and social security (FICA) and you would be liable for estimated tax and SET (self-employment tax).

What you now need to do is to download form W-8 from the IRS web site linked above, fill it out and send it in. The IRS will do the rest, no doubt (based on what you wrote above) deciding that you were, after all, an employee. Your former employer will be billed for tax and penalties. And, perhaps, audited.

As for his accusation against you: if he had no proof, no witness, that was a stupid thing to do. You can sue him in small claims court for lost wages due to his defamation, and/or you can file a complaint against him with the state labor board for all his irregular practices.

If I am wrong in the assumption that you are in the USA and you are, in fact, in the UK or Canada, the strategy is similar but the technical terms differ (for the UK google "IR35" [just that, nothing else] to see what I mean.)

Good luck.

Answer 2

Are you certain you were being paid "under the table"? It is possible (depending on the amound of time you've worked there), that your "employer" was consideriing you to be a contractor (it happens more than you might think). It is legal in that case to pay someone without withholding tax. It is also legal to pay someone in cash - suspicious, but legal. In the event this is not the case, then as long as you have been filing tax returns and reporting the income, you're OK. But there is kind of another option. If the employer wasn't taking out taxes, and you believe they should have been, you can file a form SS8, which proves that this person was indeed your employer and should have been paying FICA taxes and Federal and State withholding. This will show that you are trying to do the right thing, and prove that the employer needs to pay half of your Social Security tax. Let me know if you need more than that!

Answer 3

Since you're already aware that paying you under the table was illegal, then of course you can get your employer in trouble by reporting it. You also run the risk of getting yourself in trouble by being the one being paid that way. I think you should probably just walk away and find a legitimate job. However, you could always try the anonymous tip to the IRS. If they think there's something to it, they just might investigate the books to see if there are any other shenanigans going on there. Good luck.

Answer 4

Well, according to the federal tax code, as long as you file the form (which I can't remember the number) to claim the wages to be taxed, then you are perfectly fine. I don't know about your state code, as it varies by state. Now you could get her in trouble with the equal employment opportunity law as she did not provide proof of the accusations against you. I would probably look into getting an attorney to discuss the issue with, as you are going into a long and complex process to get anything done that will take quite a few months. Best wishes and hope this helped!

Answer 5

Let it go. Get another job far away from your old job. Be the bigger person. It's really easy to start a fight and really hard to stop one. Remember, everybody thinks their position is the right one and you, you worked under the table, so you don't appear to be the most trustworthy of people to begin with. And, the IRS will come down on you big time for tax evasion. That you needed work is no excuse, there are lots of legitimate jobs out there that you could have gotten. IRS trouble means serios jail time for you, while your ex boss will probably just have to pay a fine. Move on. Good luck.

Answer 6

SURE you can get her into trouble. As well as YOURSELF. You say it was NOT by choice BUT did you FILE tax for the money your earn UNDER the table? Now keep in mind that this person is a business owner and will most likely respond to the complaint that you were hired like as a sub-contractor and as such you would be responsible for filing your own taxes. You can do as you please but just wanted to you know you might be creating problems for yourself as well. Good Luck either way.

Answer 7

Surely you paid all your taxes properly and on time -RIGHT?? Well, not unless you received wage & earnings statement from your employer, which it sounds like you did not do.

Close the door on this whole thing, get straight with the IRS, and let bygones be bygones. I can tell by your question that you are already much smarter than before, so continue to learn from every mistake. Good Luck

Answer 8

All the American states are different, but just about all will investigate unpaid overtime/holiday pay. However, Dubya had the rules changed and you will have to investigate those rules with your state's Employment Office to see how your time qualifies for eligible overtime pay.

I'd call the former boss and ask them how they plan to report the SSI and overtime pay. If they can't help you, then I'd mention maybe the state employment office can.

Answer 9

My opinion? Grow up & move on.....

The answer to your question - Maybe you could, but you run the risk of getting yourself into trouble also, so it's probably not worth it.

Also, if I was a business owner/manager, and I was almost sure that you were stealing from the drawer, do you think I would recommend you to someone else?

Answer 10

what proof do you have that you worked for her if you were being paid under the table? This could all be a lie. Think this over very carefully before you proceed. And by the way it's "messed" not mest.