Employment claims increase as tribunal fees are abolished

by XPRESS, 10 June 2019

New figures show that employment claims have substantially increased since tribunal fees were abolished in 2017.

Law At Work (LAW), an employment law, HR and health and safety expertise business, recorded a 25% spike in 2018. They believe the abolition of tribunal fees, two years prior, to be a significaant catalyst. LAW dealt with 64 employment claims in 2018 (the first full year in which tribunal fees no longer applied), a 120% growth since 2014.

The Employment Tribunal's figures echo that of LAW. They seen an increase of over 65% in claims, totalling at 41,212 last year.

LAW predicts that these numbers will continue to rise. The first quarter of 2019 seen a further increase of 17%.

Recent reseaarch revealed that disability discrimination claims had surged the most, growing eight times faster than other types of claims.

The director of legal services at LAW, Donald MacKinnon, said: “It was inevitable that there would be an upsurge in the number of employment claims pursued following the abolition of fees.

“As awareness of how mental health issues impact on the workplace there appears to be an increased number of workers progressing disability discrimination claims relating to stress. Employers should consult their advisers on best working practices.”

Employment tribunal fees were abolished in July 2017 by the supreme court, who ruled that claimants faced fees of up to £1,200 to fund cases such as unfair dismissal, discrimination or equal pay, and this was unlawful.

Emma Richardson