In March, Acas estimated that its pre-claim conciliation (PCC) service had avoided more than 5,000 tribunal claims ssince it was established in April 2009 under a statutory code of practice.
In the first quarter of 2010, the Acas helpline referred about 300 cases a week to the PCC, a figure expected to rise to 400 during this year.
EEF is fully behind members’ efforts to resolve workplace conflicts without a tribunal hearing and that’s why we provide a mediation service to achieve settlement before even reaching the conciliation stage.
But while employers are turning more often to mediation and conciliation, there has been an overall increase in the number of cases going to employment tribunal.
The most recent official statistics from the Tribunals Service, covering 2008/09, reveal a 15 per cent rise in single claims despite a 20 per cent decline in claims overall.
There is evidence also that the number of cases coming to tribunal has continued rising into 2010. The regional employment judge in Southampton, for example, has reported a 10 per cent increase in the total number of claims in the 12 months to February.
Mediation can be a better way and it has official backing. The Acas statutory code of practice stresses the importance of resolving disputes informally to nip them in the bud.
Even so, sometimes there is no option left but to go to tribunal. EEF Advantage partner Travelers offers our members employment practice liability (EPL) insurance against losing at tribunal. It has delegated claims handling authority to our lawyers so that we can continue helping them when they need our expertise most.