On 6 May 2014, a new measure came into force whereby it is necessary for those wishing to commence an Employment Tribunal claim to first consider Early Conciliation (EC) discussions with ACAS (The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service). ACAS is an independent, publically funded organisation that helps resolve employment disputes and the EC discussions are free of charge.
ACAS have promoted EC as 'the free, fast and less stressful alternative to an Employment Tribunal for resolving workplace disputes' and have set up an information page on their website.
Previously an Employment Tribunal claim would be commenced by completing and filing an ET1 Form. However, from 6 May 2014, those wishing to commence a claim must fill-out an Early Conciliation Notification Form. ACAS will then contact the potential claimant within two days of receiving this form and the claimant will subsequently be contacted by an ACAS qualified conciliator who shall try and help the parties settle the dispute without the need for a tribunal hearing.
Once the EC process is began by filing the Early Conciliation Notification Form, the parties have one month, with the help of the conciliator, to settle the dispute. This period of one month can be extended by 14 days if necessary and agreed by all the parties. If the dispute is not settled within a month then the claimant will need a Conciliation Certificate from ACAS in order to file an ET1 Form. The Conciliation Certificate confirms that the EC requirements have been adhered to.
Importantly, the three month deadline to file an Employment Tribunal claim is paused if EC is commenced. Thus, if settlement is not reached after one month via EC, then a claimant still has one month to file an ET1 Form and thus commence an Employment Tribunal claim. Moreover, the EC discussions are completely confidential so they cannot be mentioned in a subsequent Employment Tribunal hearing.
Apart from confidentiality, other advantages to EC include saving time and money and having an opportunity to see the strengths and weaknesses of your claim. This is especially useful as the other party may have a strong counter-argument which you were unaware of and would otherwise have only emerged during Employment Tribunal proceedings. Thus, the EC allows you to determine the outcome and terms of any settlement rather than risking an adverse ruling by an Employment Tribunal. This is especially relevant as new laws mean that a claimant can now be liable for some or all of a respondent's costs of Employment Tribunal proceedings in certain circumstances, such as bringing a frivolous case that is 'without merit'. In this respect, knowing the other parties' counter-argument early on is useful and potentially cost saving.
The government have introduced this change as a further stage in their 'Red Tape' campaign to improve the economy by protecting employers from costly Employment Tribunal proceedings. It also has the added benefit of minimising the risk to employees of bringing often expensive, stressful and time-consuming Employment Tribunal proceedings. Interestingly, early conciliation has also been introduced in family law proceedings. Time will tell as to whether these early conciliation measures work in practice and they do seem to be a logical progression that should both reduce the risk associated with commencing legal proceedings and free the family courts and Employment Tribunal from claims which are more suitable for settlement.
