Employment Tribunal Help

WeakHeart

Ddunn wrote: »

I plan on getting a solicitor via my house insurance once I get the outcome of my appeal meeting.

I hope that you get the response that you would like from your appeal however I highly recommend that you contact your insurers now. They will want you to complete claim forms etc etc then they will review your case to assess perceived chances of winning to determine whether they will represent you - all takes time - longer than you think it will and if you don't win your appeal you will want legal support asap.

If needed consider buying the book Employment Tribunals, Tactics and Precedents. Even if you have representation, a very informative book.

Pricivius

I echo the suggestion that you get in touch with your insurers immediately. They will need to assess your claim to decide if they will help you and this can take a while. Until they agree, all costs incurred will be yours to pay and they won't be able to help you in the meantime.

As for a Pre Hearing Review or Case Management Discussion, your former employer can apply for either, or the tribunal can order one once it's read the response.

How long were you employed there? It seems a harsh dismissal for a longstanding employee...

Ddunn

OK. I Will ring them tomorrow.

I have tried to read everything on the web but would need a solicitor because I wouldn't be too good at the tribunal bit.

I wasn't there that long. Nearly 2 years.

Ddunn

No legal cover

Do you think a solicitor would take on just the hearing?

zzzLazyDaisy

Ddunn wrote: »

No legal cover

Do you think a solicitor would take on just the hearing?

Your problem is that there is no legal aid for tribunal representation. So if you cannot afford to pay a solicitor, this limits your options.

Some solicitors and employment law advisers will take on tribunal cases on a 'no win no fee' basis. They take a percentage of your 'winnings' which can be as much as 30%. However they vet cases carefully, and (understandably) cherry pick the ones with the best prospects of success, and a decent payout if successful. So it will depend how good your case is, and how much compensation you are likely to get.

Having said that, some CABx have employment lawyers, or trained tribunal representatives, and law centres also offer advice and assistance, so that might be a good place to start.

Ddunn

Just another quick question for people if they don't mind:

Will there be a chance to ask my ex employer question before the ET, eg send a list of questions? or would it be best to email them and hope they answer.

Many thanks to people answering my question

Pricivius

What sort of questions do you have in mind? I'm struggling to think what you might want to ask them at this stage...

Ddunn

My sacking and resulting ET claim is around the fact that sick notes were handed in a day or two after the last one had ended, during these gaps I phoned the absence line to say I'm still off and will hand in my sick note on X day. They say I was AWOL on X day. Originally they had a List of about 8 days where this happened, due to my appeal and e-mail exchanges after that the list is dwindling.

One occasion revolves around Christmas time where the business is normally shut and employees are offered paid or unpaid leave, I want to know if this was the case. This is one example.

They were replying to e-mails until this week, and now they say they will only reply via the ET3 which is due next week.

Pricivius

The ET3 should answer your claim so presuming you have raised these points in your ET1, you should get answers next week.

If you have missed anything out of your ET1, you may want to consider an application to amend.

It makes sense that the email conversation ends and the matter is no dealt with via the tribunal - you have brought the claim so you have determined the forum in which your issues are handled.

Pricivius

Two questions - what does the company's absence policy state regarding fit notes? Is there a gap between fit notes or just a delay in you providing fit notes?

My company policy would consider someone AWOL if there is a gap of a day or two between fit notes - you cannot self-certify so if you are not certified as sick by a GP, you are AWOL. If it is the case that there was a delay in providing fit notes, I would be AWOL until I provided the fit note and would then be warned that the delay was a breach of policy and should not happen again.