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Half of employers think that employment tribunals are biased towards employees, new research has revealed.
The survey of more than 470 businesses by employment advisory firm Consult GEE suggests that employers are increasingly looking on the tribunal system with suspicion.
The survey findings back up claims from HR professionals who complained that tribunal chairs are biased towards trained lawyers, a claim denied by the Employment Tribunals Service.
Stuart Chamberlain, employment law expert at Consult GEE, said: “While we could expect that some employers are always going to be worried that tribunals will have a bias against them, there have been a number of recent decisions that only fan the concerns of employers.”
There are now more than 70 individual types of claims employees can bring against employers, Chamberlain said. “Often employees think that bringing multiple claims at one time will increase their likelihood of winning at a tribunal.
“The procedural system often appears stacked against employers.”
The research also found 83% of employers think that employment law is becoming increasingly burdensome. However, just a third blamed the UK government for this, most (52%) preferring to blame the European Union.
