Am I entitled to pay...After a powercut we've been sent home?

[sallycroc]

I am currently temping in an office and this morning there was a powercut. We were all sent home.

I'm paid by the hour and every week I fill in a time sheet. Am I entitled to be paid for this day even though I was sent home?

I'm a little upset because I spent money on transport today and worried I will not be paid.

Does anyone have any ideas?

I contacted the recruitment agency and they said just to fill in a whole day on the timesheet and if they reject it to forget it. However I think the agency are fobbing me off.

However I thought there might be some ideas on answerbank.

I posted on another ask questions site and a poster said that the recruitment agency is legally obliged to pay me regardless if the office do not get paid.

He said by rights I should be paid for the full day but at the very least its my recruitment agency's remit to pay me for the full day.

However he didn't say how definite this was. Does anyone have any legal or expert knowledge or experience of something like this?

Best wishes, Cindy x

[Mr Veritas]

I consulted my Daughter over this.
She is head of HR at her company (staff of 600),and received the following advice.
Neither the Company nor the Agency is liable for the pay you would not receive due to the Power Failure.As you are paid by the hour those missing due to the power failure are not due to you.More especially since the Company would not probably pay the Agency for the hours you did not work.
The Company could claim that this was due to "circumstances beyond it's control" and not something they could have allowed for.
However,my Daughters says HER Company WOULD pay you,as it wasn't something that you did that resulted in the missing hours,but that her company's policy is not one that is applied overall.
The people tp push are the Agency,they should be able to get a definite answer (one way or the other) from the Company.
If they can',then you may have to do as the Agency says, and fill in a full day on the timesheet.However most companies check the hours on the timesheet before signing it,so I think you should know then whether or not they will OK it?

[Mr Veritas]

PS:~
Your previous answerer is incorrect,the agency is only liable for the hours signed for on your timesheet.(Ahagin information courtesy of my Daughter).

[eash]

This happened to me a while ago. I'd just started temping at this company and there was a gas leak so we were told to go home but before I left I said to the company (not the agency) Will I still get paid for this and they were like yeah the gas leak isn't your fault.
So I think it's up to the discretion of the company you work for not the recruitement agency.
It's not your fault there was a power cut and all the permanent staff wouldn't have to use up their holiday so why shouldn't you get paid?

[BenDToy]

Although I am not really qualified here, I would think that the Agency will have a minimum hours clause, for example 4 hours. This should apply to you and to them. After all they could hardly expect you to travel to a job for say a 1 hour job, and I am sure they would not allow their clients to ask this.