The Employment Lawyers Association has called on the government to allocate resources to tribunals before the Employment Rights Bill comes into force, possibly from autumn 2026.
Newly released figures by HM Courts and Tribunals Service for April 2024-March 2025 show that single employment tribunal (ET) receipts increased by 23%, with 42,000 claims received; single ET caseload stood at 45,000 – an increase of 32%, as receipts have exceeded disposals over the last year; multiple ET claim receipts increased by 23%; and multiple ET receipts exceeded disposals, resulting in a 9% rise in open caseload to 446,000 open cases.
Figures released last month showed there were about 450,000 individuals, across single and multiple claims, who were now waiting for their cases to be resolved.
Four jurisdictions accounted for 60% of claims: unfair dismissal amounted to 22% of those claims, breach of contract (14%), disability discrimination (13%) and unauthorised deductions (12%).
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Caspar Glyn KC, chair of the ELA, said: “The past figures are of real concern, but of yet more concern is the future.”
“Unfair dismissal cases make up the largest part of the caseload, at 22%, but today, an employee has to wait to be employed for two years to issue such a claim.
“The evidence is clear. The tribunal cannot cope with the rising tide of employment litigation.”
One of the reforms in the new Bill, now being examined in the House of Lords, means employees can issue claims on the first day of employment, compared with the current system of two years of service. Glyn warned that this could cause the tribunal system to “drown under the weight of increased litigation.”
Chancellor Rachel Reeves outlined a £7 billion allocation to the Ministry of Justice in her Spending Review on Wednesday, with up to £450 million set to be invested in the court system to reduce record-level delays across all criminal courts.
“Unless a good proportion of this funding is made available to the employment tribunal, rather than only the criminal courts, then the new rights will be illusory,” Glyn KC said.
The ELA called for more judges to sit on more days to get through cases, reduce the backlog, and increase funding to the Tribunal to address shortages in resources and staff.
“The government risks introducing a raft of new rights for workers but locking those rights up behind a system where justice delayed is justice denied,” the senior barrister added.
Employment minister Justin Madders promised more judges for the system at the Acas conference last month, while a new scheme has been launched to encourage former justice workers to return to the profession.
Meanwhile, Pete Colby, founder of mediation firm Pragmatism, told Personnel Today this week that ministers were tackling the issue the wrong way round and instead of putting in resources to hear claims, investment needed to be made in mediation and conciliation services. He said most claims that reached tribunals could be settled without the need for legal intervention.
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