The number of employment tribunal claims backed by trade unions fell by more than 40 per cent in 2003 to the lowest level ever recorded by the TUC.
A report from the organisation showed it registered 2,612 new claims in 2003, down from 4,419 in 2002.
Based on a survey of 31 unions representing 5.5 million members, findings showed that unions won or settled nine out of 10 claim applications, and won four in five cases that made it to full hearings.
The highest settlements and awards recorded last year included: £300,000 shared by around 140 members of clothing trade union KFAT at Totectors; £30,000 disability discrimination settlement won by teachers’ union NASUWT for a member dismissed from a secondary school while they were sick; and £115,000 won by finance union Unifi for a member in a whistleblowing and unfair dismissal case.
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