For many years employers have been complaining that employment law is “employee friendly” and that the pendulum of power had swung too far in favour of the workforce. However, over the last year or so the government has introduced a series of reforms which have been largely “employer friendly”. We outlined some of these changes in our previous post. One example of such a change is the introduction of a new mandatory ACAS early conciliation service, designed to reduce employment tribunal claims significantly.

Under this new procedure, individuals wishing to bring claims against an employer will first need to contact ACAS where they would need to give their (and their employer’s) contact details. ACAS will then contact the employer to see whether there is any opportunity in settling the issue before a claim is brought. If conciliation is refused by either party or does not succeed, ACAS will provide a certificate to the individual which will enable them to present his or her claim at tribunal. In essence, the rule will be no certificate, no claim. This new process is just one of a number of changes to employment law designed to discourage claims. Two years ago, the government changed the qualifying period for unfair dismissal claims from one year to two and tried to justify the change by stating that it will give employers more confidence to recruit. In reality, it only placed another hurdle for individuals who were unfairly dismissed.

Furthermore, in July 2013, the government introduced a new cap for unfair dismissal being the lower of £74,200 (£76,574 as of 6 April 2014) or one year’s gross salary. Consequently, the losers continue to be the highly paid employees and/or those who are members of final salary pension schemes as they are the employees most likely to exceed the cap.

Last year also saw the controversial introduction of fees for employment tribunal claims lodged on or after 29 July 2013. Unsurprisingly, this also had a significant impact on the way tribunal claims from lower paid employees were (and continue to be) handled. In fact, a recent report by the Ministry of Justice showed that the number of applications lodged at the tribunals fell for the third consecutive quarter between October and December 2013. Although there were 9,801 new claims, the figures showed a 75% drop from the previous quarter and a 79% drop from the same period in 2012. This sharp downfall is evidently a direct consequence of the fact that employees now have to pay an upfront fee to raise a claim with a further ‘hearing fee’ once the case is referred to a tribunal. Claim types are subdivided into ‘Type A’ claims (where the issue fee is £160 and the hearing fee is £230); and ‘Type B’ unfair dismissal or discrimination claims (with the issue fee being £250 and the hearing fee being £950). Although there is a remission system in place, the criteria is quite strict and in reality, most employees are unable to apply for it.

The above changes have no doubt been a great result for employers, who may at last feel that the government is finally on their side. However, employers shouldn’t really be conceited just yet. Legislation is due to hit over the course of the next 12 months which will make their lives difficult. For example, from April 2015, fathers will be able to share parental leave with the aim of helping women return to the workplace, allowing men to have more involvement in caring for new babies. Under the new plans starting in April 2015, a couple will have to give their employers an indicative breakdown of how they plan to share their leave eight weeks before it starts. Parents can even ask to take this in alternate one-week blocks and they will even be able to change their proposals twice during the year-long leave. It is foreseeable that requests will increase significantly (with male employees leading the way!) causing possible impact on businesses as employers will have to leave aside valuable time to consider such requests.

Equally, on 30 June 2014 the Flexible Working Regulations will be amended. This will mean that the right to request flexible working will be extended to cover all employees after 26 weeks’ service, rather than only those with children under the age of 17 (or 18 if the child is disabled) and certain carers. And not just that – employers will have a legal obligation to provide a valid reason if they can’t say yes.

Employers’ have a right to worry that things could backfire, making it harder for those more in need of flexible working, increasing the risk of discrimination claims, and adding unnecessary red tape. For now though, they can continue to enjoy this period of time knowing very well that the pendulum of power is in their favour.

If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised in this article, please contact our employment law solicitor, Khurram Ahmad, on 0161 834 2623 or khurram.ahmad@bpslaw.co.uk