Marvin OnumonuThe backlog at UK employment tribunals reached a record high, with nearly 50,000 cases waiting to be heard, according to figures obtained by Philip Cameron, partner at law firm Littler.
Cameron said the long backlog was “just not fair on either party” and that “leaving businesses in legal limbo makes it harder for them to operate,” especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with fewer resources.
Cameron said: “The government needs to supply proper additional funding to help the tribunals cope with the current backlog and deal with the likely surge in disputes that is expected after the Employment Rights Bill becomes law.”
Additionally, Cameron warned that making unfair dismissal a day one right “even with probation periods permitted, is going to result in a big surge in claims.”
Cameron added: “On top of that is the possibility of disputes arising from companies making redundancies as they try to cope with the recent increase in the minimum wage and employers’ national insurance.”
