I can certainly prove I did a whole bunch of work for a fairly lengthy period, so could be something worth me exploring. Thanks for that! Was about to just write it off

No written contract (over here) is sometimes a very nice thing in those kinds of situations, because then some very employee-friendly default terms do apply (unlimited contract time, long notice period for dismissal, no reassignment to a field of work you might not like, etc).

Get a lawyer and good luck!

There's two in the family luckily! And thank you!

Had they paid your previously, just failing to pay this time? In that case it will be quite easy to demonstrate what you're owed.

But yes, the other user was absolutely right: just because a contract isn't written, doesn't mean it's not a contract.

It's been late several times, and I've had to remind and pester. I started working with them full-time in December, they pay every two weeks, the mid-week payment has been late a few times. But I said 'this is now my full time wage, so I need to be paid before the 1st because of bills'. So there was never an issue with that one until this month. I sent a reminder the day before, which was ignored. Then, as warned, all my bills bounced. Three days into the month and nothing still.

I suspect they're not happy with something (this happened once before I was full-time, I knocked the money off for a single task that they weren't happy with, which was something I know I'm not good at, but tried anyway). But like... you can't play those games with someone's full time salary. It's insane to think that's okay.