Almost half way through February 2009 and still no sign of the employment tribunal statistics for the period from 1 April 2007 to 31 March 2008. With an increasing number of XpertHR subscribers demanding to know why the figures on our site are so out of date (we can only pass on what we’re given), we’ve been left with no choice but to submit a freedom of information request to the Ministry of Justice asking them to reveal last year’s figures.
Should we have to do this? We don’t think so. Employers and the general public surely have a right to know which employment tribunal jurisdictions are prompting the most claims, and to judge for themselves the success or otherwise of government initiatives to keep potential claims out of the tribunals.
Yes, we know from the unified Tribunals Service 2007/08 annual report that the number of employment tribunal claims received was up almost 50,000 on the previous year, and that around 20,000 fewer claims were disposed of. And yes, Acas has told us in its annual report how many tribunal claims it received for conciliation in the relevant period, and the number that were settled or withdrawn. But this isn’t sufficient information for employers. They want to know the kind of awards that tribunals are making in the different jurisdictions in terms of maximums, medians and averages. And with new jurisdictions coming on to the scene in the last few years - age, religion and belief, and sexual orientation - aren’t they entitled to know the impact of these?
Further information:
The mysterious case of the missing tribunal statistics
Freedom of information request
Acas annual report and accounts 2007/08 (on Acas website)
Employment tribunal and EAT statistics (GB) 1 April 2006 to 31 March 2007 (on Employment Tribunals Service website)
Tribunals service annual report and accounts 2007-08 (PDF format, 2MB) (on Tribunals Service website)
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