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Unfair Dismissal

Answer

HMCTS does not hold separate data on the number of wrongful dismissal claims.

The quarterly average length of proceedings for unfair dismissal claims can be found in the published statistics: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tribunal-statistics-quarterly-january-to-march-2021.

These are only available until April 2021. Publication of Employment Tribunal timeliness information ceased from April 2021 when the jurisdiction moved to an interim database with limited management information. Employment Tribunals are now in the process of transitioning to a new case management system and work is in hand as part of the HMCTS data strategy to reintroduce the publication of timeliness information at the end of this calendar year.

Several measures have been taken to reduce the average waiting time for a first hearing in Employment Tribunals including the recruitment of additional judges. To address growing demand, the government invested £2.85 million in December 2022 to allow up to 1,700 more cases to come before judges by the end of March 2023. We also created a virtual region of fee-paid judges to hear remote cases from any region.

Additionally, the Judicial Review and Courts Act transfers Employment Tribunal rule-making powers to the Tribunal Procedures Committee. This independent, judge-led committee will allow the Tribunal to respond more swiftly and flexibly to the challenges it faces through operational changes and rulemaking. This measure will also allow the judiciary to manage their workloads more flexibly, maximising the capacity of the Employment Tribunal

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

HL4452

Session

2023-24

Grouped for answer

Yes

Subjects

Employment Tribunals Service Unfair dismissal

Contains statistics

Yes

Link

View this Written question on www.parliament.uk