Acas has published an in-depth study of conciliation at employment tribunals.
Since April 2014, it has been mandatory for employees wishing to bring a claim to first contact Acas for “early conciliation”. Acas also offers conciliation services at a later stage where the claim proceeds.
The report, Evaluation of ACAS conciliation in employment tribunal applications 2016, found that more than a quarter of employment tribunal claimants who abandon their claims do so because they think they won’t win or it will be a waste of time. One in five found the fees were too high, and 17% found the process too stressful.
For employers, the figures were much the same—28% didn’t think they would win or it would be a waste of time, 22% thought they didn’t have a case or their case would be thrown out by the judge, and 14% found the tribunal fees off-putting.
