Labour’s employment law reforms will pile more pressure on our already overwhelmed tribunals. There is a better solution, says Richard Atkinson

The Employment Rights Bill, which is currently at the committee stage and has been the subject of much discussion, could deliver the most wide-ranging changes to employment law in generations. However, for the reforms to be effective, the law must work in practice for both employees and employers. 

The proposed extension of the time limit on cases taken to employment tribunals from three months to six months, while welcome, is likely to increase the number of cases and the corresponding backlog even more. The government must therefore ensure that employment tribunals are properly funded, resourced and can respond to the anticipated caseload increase or the aims or the Bill will fail. 

Backlog

The backlog of the employment tribunal has already increased by 28 per cent over the last year and sits at 40,000 cases and it is predicted that the Bill’s provisions will lead to a 15 per cent rise. If employees cannot access the tribunals due to the backlogs, the new rights afforded by the Bill will not exist in practice. Delays in cases are also bad for employers that seek to have swift resolutions as protracted disputes can be costly and destabilising. 

A solution would be to create a fast-track route for processing smaller claims that could be dealt with through either the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) or the new Fair Work Agency. 

With the new Fair Work Agency, the UK will have, for the first time, a single labour market enforcement agency that could help reduce the number of claims and tribunal backlog. The Agency is not expected to be established before 2026, and it is still not known what powers it will have or how it will operate. This means that uncertainty will remain even after the Bill becomes an Act. It is also crucial that the government provides the Fair Work Agency with sufficient funding to cope with the unprecedented demand following the Bill’s implementation. 

It will also only work if all organisations understand how the laws apply to them. Without clear and fair employment laws, businesses and workers cannot plan for the future. The new laws must ensure that everyone has full access to justice, a vital public service designed to protect the rights and dignity of all members of society.

Richard Atkinson is president of the Law Society of England and Wales