Understanding The Employment Tribunal

When you deal with a lot of employees, there may come a time when the employee seeks to handle a grievance through an employment tribunal. With any luck, it won't come to that. As an employer, you should have systems in place to deal with both grievances and disciplinary issues. In most companies, this consists of a three stage process, where there is written notification of the issue to be discussed, a meeting to discuss and decide the issue and a further meeting to appeal the decision taken. Many grievances and disciplinary issues can be resolved by communicating during this process.

As a company owner, you can also avoid the employment tribunal by having clearly stated practices and procedures within your staff handbook. This will tell employees what to expect in certain situations. The employee contract is another key tool, as it spells out the basics of employees' pay and conditions, annual leave and any grievance and disciplinary procedures. When all this is clear, employees know where they stand before seeking the assistance of an employment tribunal.

However, there may be issues that cannot be resolved through the typical three stage process. If there's such a dispute, then the employee may seek restitution by going to a tribunal. This is less formal than a court, with the case heard before a three person panel. Employees have to complete the ET1 form in order to have their case heard. As their employer, you will get a copy of their claim and will have to respond within 28 days.

In the meantime, the tribunal will be looking into whether your former employee can make a claim. There may be a preliminary hearing to determine this. If the claim is judged to be valid, then the hearing will go ahead, with each side able to bring witnesses to support their case. If your former employee wins you will be ordered to pay compensation. How much you pay depends on the nature of the claim. For discrimination or health and safety, the potential compensation is unlimited. For unfair dismissal, the award will partly be based on compensation and partly on the employee's age and length of service. For wrongful dismissal, the maximum compensation is £25,000. This can be a costly exercise for a company, so it's a good idea to seek specialist advice. It's also useful to review your HR documentation and make sure it's clear so that you can reduce your chances of facing an employment tribunal.

Deminos are HR Outsourcing and employment law specialists. To find out more please call us on 020 7870 1090 or visit http://www.deminos.co.uk