Dispute Resolution Rules Not Working

The statutory dismissal and grievance procedures introduced in October 2004 were intended to promote the resolution of disputes within the workplace. At the same time, new tribunal rules of procedure were brought into force which were designed to filter out weak claims and to make the tribunal process more efficient.

However, opinion is growing that the reforms have not achieved their stated aims and bodies on both sides of industry are now calling for a rethink. In this respect two recent reports are likely to be particularly influential, one issued by ACAS and the other by the Employment Lawyers Association.

This is primarily concerned with the changes made to ACAS's role in the conciliation of disputes. Before the reforms, ACAS had a duty to conciliate right up to the final hearing. Now there are fixed periods of conciliation (of either seven or thirteen weeks) in most cases.