Employers worried about the increasing numbers of employees taking their
grievances to employment tribunals now have more cause for concern. It is now
taking an average of 18 months for a case to be heard at the EAT in London,
from a waiting time of about five or six months two years ago.
Stephen Levinson, solicitor at KLegal, said "There are six courts at
the EAT but one is in darkness practically every day. The problem is that the
judges may be allocated to the EAT but it does not mean that they are actually
sitting there."
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And the problem may be about to get worse as an expected increase in
tribunal appeals have not even come through yet.
An official at the EAT admitted there are problems associated with the shortage
of appointed judges. He told employers’ Law, "At the moment we have
problems getting the judiciary in place. We are not getting enough as we used
too. Even if we had six judges, they are not always here and we have no control
over who is available. There is also the problem of increasing case
loads."
