Employment Tribunal

julia9134

There must be many people out there facing a tribunal so lets have some tips from people who have been there.

What is it like at a tribunal?
How are you treated?
Does the tribunual favour the employee?
What kind of awards are made?
What are the mistakes that employers make that tribunals frown on?

Does any one want to share their experiences?

olias

julia9134 wrote: »

There must be many people out there facing a tribunal so lets have some tips from people who have been there.

What is it like at a tribunal? A bit like a criminal trial, but less formal - ie tribunal panel sit on top table, in front is a witness box or table and behind that 2 tables, 1 for employee and one for employer, behind that seating for witnesses and public.

How are you treated? Very well

Does the tribunual favour the employee? No favouritism, tribunal is totally impartial. The only comment I would add is that if you are representing yourself, rather than through a solicitor, then the tribunal will help guide you through the process and allow you more time etc etc

What kind of awards are made? Not as much as you would think! There are statutory amounts laid down in law, then additional amounts that can be awarded for loss of income, hurt feelings etc. As an example I was awarded about £3500 for constructive dismissal which barely covered my loss of earnings until I got another job. There was certainly no feeling that it was a bit of a windfall for me as it all went to pay off the overdraft and other debt I had occrued through losing my income.

What are the mistakes that employers make that tribunals frown on? Mainly failing to follow either procedures as laid down in law, or failing to follow their own procedures as laid down in their own company handbook.

Does any one want to share their experiences?

HTH!

Olias

danni_bab3

julia9134 wrote: »

There must be many people out there facing a tribunal so lets have some tips from people who have been there.

What is it like at a tribunal?
How are you treated?
Does the tribunual favour the employee?
What kind of awards are made?
What are the mistakes that employers make that tribunals frown on?

Does any one want to share their experiences?

hi im currently going through the process of a tribunal and think this thread is good if people do put their experiences down as it is a scary thing there is a page about employment tribunals http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/ResolvingWorkplaceDisputes/Employmenttribunals/DG_173242
which is quite helpful but does nt have the personal touch on how people coped going through this.

i have been going through the process since august last year was planned to have it a few months ago but the courts cancelled it the day before as no judge aparently this is very common as they over book expecting people to settle and have spaces to fit everyone in and unfortunatly with mine none settled and mine was the case that got pulled and has only just got a new date for few months time.

julia9134

I'm right at the very beginning having put my application in and am waiting with my nerves to see if they will accept my appeal...:think:

mayb_2

I appologise for the length of this post but I have spent the last 3 years involved in a unfair dismissal because of whistleblowing case.

Firstly I would advise anyone who can settle beforehand to do so. The employer offered me £20,000 to drop my case, which I refused to do for reasons I wont go into here.

Secondly I would advise that if you have an insurance policy you check to see if you are covered for legal issues including employment on your contents insurance. Then ensure you involve your insurance company from day one. I would also recommend you use your Union if you belong to one.

Usually both insurance companies, Trade Unions and solicitors will seek to settle the claim out of court. As someone has already posted you get nothing more from a Tribunal than a return to the financial position you would have been in at the point of the issue arrising to the day of the Tribunal itself. You may not have a job, you may be too ill to work, you may have suffered a break down etc. The Tribunal is not interested in any of that and the awards for hurt feelings rely on a fixed band of rates within which you may not even fall.

I lost my case as it was very complicated, I had no representation, I was/am ill with a condition which now leaves me unable to work (any award deducts the benefits you have received as unemployed or sick etc), the other side were prepared to lie under oath and to invent evidence and the Judge would not allow me to call my witnesses from the workplace because of the cost. I faced a Barrister and a legal team and the employers spent over £30,000 on their legal representation. I had no money to spend on mine.

The Judges believed I had raised issues in good faith, had been correct in saying one issue was a breach in law and had raised the issues with the right people at the time. However, the employer had claimed breach of trust and confidence and the Judge said that I had not been sacked for whistleblowing but for the breakdown in trust and confidence. He did not say what had caused the breakdown but the law states that the employer cannot be questioned further on this matter. Nobody has taken up the issue of the legal breach by the employer and the Tribunal were not interested in the fact that proper procedures had not been followed by the employer. Breach of trust and confidence is being used more often by employers as a get out of jail free card. No one can dispute or disprove what amounts to a 'feeling' held by someone.

The Judge shouted at me and demanded I 'lead him to the law', did not instruct me as to how I should conduct the procedures and was generally more helpful to the other side - the barrister and the Judge would engage in 'legal' discussions I could not follow. The employer was allowed to introduce new evidence even during the Tribunal and gave lots of paperwork to the Judge regarding legal arguments etc. which I could not do.

I have been taken back to the Tribunal by my employers who wanted to regain their expenses. The Judge threw out their basis for a claim but awarded costs against me of £2000 for not accepting the offer of £20,000 in settlement as it had been a long case. I am in the process of an Appeal to the EAT.

I found the whole process to be a nightmare of stress and I have read that the majority of people who have gone to Tribunal find it difficult to find employment after the case. You can see why - that is also why it is recommended that you settle, that way you can disguise the fact that you have been through the process and will get a confidentiality clause written in to the agreement. This helps both sides to pretend it never happened and reduces costs to the employer.

It is generally accepted that the Tribunal is a low/no cost arena for disputes to be settled between employer and employee. This is not the case anylonger. The Government have changed the laws governing Tribunals and the odds are more heavily stacked against you because of it. The decision taken is not one beyond reasonable doubt but on the balance of probabilities as viewed by the Judges. The Judge does not have to look at any/all of the paperwork provided and will not necessarily look at your evidence. The current trend is for solicitors and barristers to be involved and this does not mean that costs will not be awarded against you and they will be based on how much the other side spent regardless of how they went about it - costs against claimants used to be very rare and when awarded very low, but now that the barrier has been lifted to £10,000 of costs, more higher awards are being made.

I know of another case where the employee won the case and the Judge said the person should be reinstated in their job and was very condemnatory of the employer. The employer did not reinstate the employee, a sum was imposed on them for this but overall the financial gain was not very much and the employee not only lost his job but also his house which was tied to the job. He does not feel like a winner.

I am not trying to be depressing but I had been told on more than one occasion that Tribunals are not for employees. If you win you only get a small amount of compensation as a rule. You are no further foward job wise and you are disadvantaged in the job market if you lose a Tribunal - you remain sacked after all.

So settle if you can and try to overcome the injustice of it all is my advice. The money will help you to go forward, the confidentiality clause will allow you to say you left the job for whatever reason or you can ask for an agreed reference. Put the thing behind you and move on.

I am not sorry that I chose the route I did - I believe in honesty, integrity and standing up to bullies - however, I knew I would not be well enough to return to work - sacked or not - so did not have to take a decision based on my future employability. If you need to work then you need to take a long view.

woody01

What is it like at a tribunal? Fine. As long as you tell the truth.
How are you treated? Like a human. Tribunal panels only hear cases that are likely to fall the way of the employee
Does the tribunual favour the employee? Absolutely not. Credibility can be blown apart in an instant if you lay it on too thick. The panel is solely interested in facts and not opnions
What kind of awards are made? Very rarely over £5K. It's only actual loss normally that they are interested in
What are the mistakes that employers make that tribunals frown on? Why? Are you trying to catch a former emplyer out as your case is weak?

julia9134

woody01 wrote: »

What are the mistakes that employers make that tribunals frown on? Why? Are you trying to catch a former emplyer out as your case is weak?

Far from it, mine obtained a court order to access my bank accounts over a minor discipline breach. (Suspicion of having a lodger in my home which was a house that came with the job.) So not even a criminal matter. Not exactly legal for human rights, Data Protection or abuse of authority..

dickydonkin

Very interesting post mayb - what a horrendous and protracted ordeal.

There is nothing more that can really be added to your excellent post and I am sure many will take heed of the potential pitfalls that can be encountered during the ET process.

Thankfully, it is a fact that many disputes are resolved prior to hearing and as you correctly highlighted, it can usually be the best option to accept any reasonable offer, draw a line under the matter and move on.

You may have lost your case, but you have certainly retained your integrity, dignity and honour.

They say that right beats might, but sadly, that is not always the case.

Good luck for the future.

Any

julia9134 wrote: »

Far from it, mine obtained a court order to access my bank accounts over a minor discipline breach. (Suspicion of having a lodger in my home which was a house that came with the job.) So not even a criminal matter. Not exactly legal for human rights, Data Protection or abuse of authority..

But wasn't it the call of the judge/police or whoever who issued the court order in the first place? Surely these are not issued lightly?

cali_

woody01 wrote: »

What are the mistakes that employers make that tribunals frown on? Why? Are you trying to catch a former emplyer out as your case is weak?

It's another question and if you don't want to answer it then leave it blank! No need to be rude about it.

julia9134

Any wrote: »

But wasn't it the call of the judge/police or whoever who issued the court order in the first place? Surely these are not issued lightly?

Exactly, I am awaiting the paperwork from the court to see what was put on the application for the production order. I believe that this was lies, it wasn't the judge issuing as they have gone by the application form.