What Employers Should and Should Not Do When Anticipating an Employment Tribunal Claim in England

If you can avoid a case in an employment tribunal, you can save your business time, money and its reputation. However, it might not always be smooth sailing since employment disputes are bound to arise in any workplace. Hence, if you anticipate an employment tribunal claim, you should be prepared and understand what to do and what not to do. While you should also seek legal advice concerning your specific claim, this article will explain what you generally should and should not do when anticipating an employment tribunal in England.

When Might an Employer Anticipate a Tribunal Claim?

You may anticipate an employment tribunal claim when you have had a dispute with an employee which you cannot resolve. This could be about, for example:

• an unfair dismissal;
• discrimination; or
• pay issues.

Anticipating a Tribunal Claim

If you anticipate facing an employment tribunal claim, there are some actions you should take and should not take.

Try To Resolve the Issue With the Concerned Person

You should do what you can to avoid an employment tribunal claim. This starts with avoiding disputes and employment issues. However, if an employment issue arises, think carefully about how you deal with it to resolve it. If you cannot resolve the issue and it becomes an employment tribunal claim, you will need to prove your behaviour was reasonable.

Engage with Acas

If your employee is considering taking an employment claim to an employment tribunal, they should first try to resolve the issue or dispute through conciliation with Acas. 

Acas will work with you both to try to find a solution that, if found, avoids the need for an employment tribunal. Therefore, you must engage with this process and do what you can to find a resolution. 

While conciliation may take time, an employment tribunal claim will also burden your business. Additionally, whilst your employee must notify Acas before making an employment claim, they are not obliged to engage with Acas. Hence, if you initiate an engagement with Acas, this might encourage your employee to follow suit. 

Start Thinking About Describing Your Side of the Story

If you anticipate an employment tribunal claim, you should consider and prepare your side of the story. This will help you respond when the employment tribunal office sends you a response form. 

In addition, describing your side of the story will help prepare your defence. Where the case is complex, you will probably need legal help forming a defence. Hence, you should seek advice from an experienced employment lawyer. 

Do Not Ignore the Issue

Do not ignore the employment issue or dispute if you anticipate an employment tribunal claim. Ignoring issues tends to make them get worse rather than go away. If you do not address the problem, it is more likely that your employee will make an employment tribunal claim because this will provide them with a potential solution.

Do Not Put Off Gathering Evidence

Once you receive notification of the claim, you only have 28 days to fill in the response form. Hence, if you anticipate an employment tribunal claim, you should begin collecting evidence. You can start by considering which individuals are involved in the matter, the types of information you may require, and from whom. Plenty of evidence is crucial to explain your side of the story and defend the claim against you. 

Key Takeaways

If you anticipate an employment tribunal claim, you should engage in specific actions and avoid others. For example, you should try to engage positively in the Acas conciliation scheme because if you do, there is more chance that you, your employee and Acas can avoid the need for an employment tribunal. Also, you should not avoid putting off gathering evidence if you anticipate an employment tribunal claim, as this saves time if you need to respond to the employment tribunal office.

If you need help understanding the dos and don’ts when anticipating an employment tribunal claim in England, our experienced employment lawyers can assist as part of our LegalVision membership. For a low monthly fee, you will have unlimited access to lawyers to answer your questions and draft and review your documents for a low monthly fee. So call us today on 0808 196 8584 or visit our membership page.

Frequently Asked Questions