A business lobby group has welcomed government funding into preventing workplace disputes from going to tribunal.
The £37m investment will go to the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration service to help improve its helpline and advice services, potentially saving businesses up to £175m a year.
The move comes as part of a government package put in place after the Employment Tribunal Service reported a sharp upsurge in claims last year, with a leap of more than 15% since 2006.
The biggest increase came from equal pay claims, with a rise of nearly 155%, and sex discriminations almost doubled, to 28,153 cases last year.
Pat McFadden, the minister for employment relations, said the new system would strike a balance between ensuring workers can protect their rights through tribunals while helping them to resolve disputes as early as possible.
“We want to move from the current overly-rigid and legalistic process to one where there is more conciliation between employers and employees,” he said.
The Forum for Private Business (FPB) applauded the move, but urged small businesses to protect themselves from dispute with correct management procedures.
Philip Moody, the forum’s senior member services representative, said its members have been experiencing increasing problems with tribunal claims.
“Many business owners struggle to balance running their businesses with the correct implementation of employment rules and regulations.”
He added that the FPB has updated its employment guide to cover new and upcoming changes to the law in 2008.
© Crimson Business Ltd. 2008
