Employment Tribunal claims rise by 56%

03 Sep 2010 - Are some of these claims avoidable

The Employment Tribunal and EAT statistics 2009-10 (GB) released by the Tribunals Service this month show a 56% rise in the number of accepted claims from to 236,100

The increase in receipts is largely as a result of the rise in multiple claims, but also partly as a result of the changing economic climate.

There were 126,300 jurisdictional claims associated with unfair dismissal, breach of contract and redundancy, which is 17% higher than for 2008-09 and 62% higher than in 2007-08, and likely to be a result of the economic recession.

NETconsent View

NETconsent suggests that one way of decreasing the numbers of employees taking action against their employer is to improve the communication of policies and procedures. Automating the process makes it easier to manage the distribution policies and ensure everyone signs up to them. Undisputable proof of fair and consistent employee policies and management practices reduces the threat of action and minimises direct and indirect costs.

To find out more download the NETseries paper: Reduce the financial impact of disciplinary cases.

Based on the latest research figures, it calculates how avoiding just 1 in 5 cases produces substantial cost-savings:

• Less non productive time;
• HR and management costs involved in pursuing the disciplinary process reduced;
• External legal fees minimised;
• Employment tribunal awards or out of court settlement avoided.

Even when reputational damage or possible deal or client losses are excluded from the calculations, the potential savings are significant.