record high for Employment Tribunals

Latest figures from the Tribunal Service have shown that unfair dismissal claims have overtaken equal pay as the most frequently lodged claim. The number of unfair dismissal cases accepted between April 2008 and March 2009 rose by 29% to 52,711, up from 40,941 the previous year.

Redundancy pay cases have rocketed from 7,313 last year to 10,839 for the current year, while cases for redundancy - failure to inform and consult - more than doubled at 11,371.

The number of individual claims against employers has increased by 28% compared to the same period last year.

The dramatic increase to 150,900 individual claims during the last quarter of 2008/2009 unsurprisingly reflects the growing impact of the economic recession.   Claims comprise almost 1/4 million separate issues of complaint in relation to treatment or failures towards an employee.