Recent Government figures and feedback from tribunals show a significant decrease in claims in 2011. In the period between July and September 2011 the number of cases fell by 30% compared with the same period in 2010.
This reduction is thought partly to be attributable to the unusually high number of holiday pay claims brought by employees in the airline industry in 2010. However, even after removing such claims from the 2010 figures, the overall trend still seems to suggest a decrease in claims. Another explanation put forward is the increased use of the pre-claim conciliation provided by ACAS to resolve disputes before filing a claim. This may indicate a potential for success in the Government’s plan to introduce ACAS conciliation as a pre-cursor to all tribunal claims.
The raft of measures proposed by the Government to reduce the number of claims reaching tribunals are yet to be implemented so further reductions may well continue in 2012.
