Gill McCarthy on a change in the law on employment tribunals.
Disputes in the workplace can be stressful, time-consuming, and costly to businesses. With more than 280,000 construction businesses in the UK employing around 10% of UK workers, workplace disputes
can have a big impact.
Things can quickly get out of hand if issues aren’t tackled as soon as problems arise. We would always advise it’s better to try to sort things out informally first. But there are times when a dispute could get serious and a potential tribunal claim could be made.
Employers need to know that from 6 April 2014 the rules changed.
Anyone who wants to make an employment tribunal (ET) claim can use Acas’s new free Early Conciliation (EC) service to try to resolve the dispute quickly and avoid the need to go to court. In addition, from 6 May it will be mandatory for anyone wishing to bring a claim to inform Acas as the first step. It would normally be an employee who brings an ET claim against an employer and therefore would contact Acas. Acas would then contact the employer and set the process in motion for Early Conciliation, if the parties both agree.
EC builds on a similar free, voluntary service that Acas has been running for some time now called Pre-Claim Conciliation (PCC). In 2012/13 PCC helped resolve more than 22,000 workplace disputes.
How Early Conciliation will work
Anyone intending to make a tribunal claim will notify Acas using the very simple form on our website. When Acas receives the form we will contact the individual by the end of the next working day. In that phone call we will clarify any details, gather basic information on the dispute itself and give the individual a fuller understanding of EC. Once this has been done the case will be passed on to a conciliator who will make direct contact to see if they can help the two sides come to an agreement.
They will also explain the way tribunals operate and what they will take into account in deciding the case, discuss the options or tell them about any proposals the other side has for a settlement.
Acas conciliators don’t make any judgements on the case, or the likely outcome of a hearing and using conciliation is completely voluntary – EC will only be initiated if the claimant consents. EC will help resolve the majority of workplace disputes which may lead to an employment tribunal, including, for example, unfair dismissal claims, deductions from wages or unpaid notice/holiday pay.
If EC doesn’t end the dispute, the employee can still carry on and make an employment tribunal claim. Acas will then issue a certificate as proof that the employee fulfilled their legal obligation to notify it first of their intention to make an ET claim, and a unique reference number on that certificate can then be used as part of the tribunal application to show they have notified Acas. In the meantime Acas is still available to help the parties resolve their dispute through conciliation if they wish to.
The advantages of Early Conciliation
- It informs. Parties can get a clearer idea of the strengths and weaknesses of the potential case, and explore the options for resolving their differences.
- It saves time and money. If parties can settle their differences, this will avoid the time, expense, risk and stress of going to tribunal.
- You are in control. Agreements to avoid a tribunal are on terms decided by the parties, not imposed by a tribunal.
- It’s confidential. Acas does not speak to anyone outside the process, whilst tribunal hearings are public.
- It can restore trust. If the claimant is still employed it increases the chance of avoiding a permanent breakdown of the employment relationship – if that is what both sides want.
- It can be a quick solution. Many cases can be dealt with in a few telephone calls, with agreed outcomes implemented very soon afterwards.
Gill McCarthy is director of operational policy and performance at Acas. To find out more visit www.acas.org.uk/earlyconciliation
