Industrial Tribunals (Hansard, 31 October 1990)

§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Employment (Viscount Ullswater)
My Lords, Her Majesty's Government have increased the budget for the industrial tribunals in England and Wales by some half a million pounds. The noble and learned Lord the Lord Chancellor, in consultation with the senior judiciary, has allocated substantial additional judge time to the employment appeal tribunal. That has already helped to reduce delays in cases reaching a hearing.

§ Baroness Turner of Camden
My Lords, I thank the noble Viscount for that reply. Is he aware that, despite what is apparently to be done, there are horrendous backlogs of cases, particularly in the South, which sometimes mean that delays of up to six months or even perhaps nine months are envisaged? In my own union, I am aware of two recently heard cases listed for the EAT where the earliest date that can be given is March next year. Does he agree that that is an awful way to conduct cases that were originally meant to be quickly determined through easily accessible proceedings, bearing in mind that such employment cases often involve people who have been dismissed?

§ Viscount Ullswater
My Lords, it is the intention that the industrial tribunals should hear 60 per cent. of cases within 12 weeks. There has been an increase in the number of cases coming before the tribunals and public expenditure must be contained within the resources available. All parts of the public service, including industrial tribunals, have a part to play in that process. I have today announced an increase in the budget for industrial tribunals. I am glad to say that the average waiting time in the employment appeal tribunal has fallen from some 18 months in April to an average of 13 months as of today's date. 1843 Assuming that there will be no further increase in the number of applications, waiting time should continue to fall.

§ Lord Dean of Beswick
My Lords, bearing in mind that the waiting period is still quite lengthy for people whose living may be at stake, would it not be fair to restore the status quo as soon as the applicant lodges his appeal so that his job is not filled by someone else?

§ Viscount Ullswater
My Lords, I am a little confused. The noble Lord refers to an appeal. I do not know whether he means an application to an industrial tribunal. The 12 weeks are not wasted. It is quite complicated to get all the facts together and prepare the papers. He will also be aware that some two-thirds of registered applications do not reach a hearing. Parties often settle prior to a hearing, often through the help of ACAS. Therefore the 12-week period is logical.

§ Lord Dean of Beswick
My Lords, is the Minister aware that a large number of people will still suffer unnecessarily under the present situation? Does he agree that the matter ought to be reconsidered?

§ Viscount Ullswater
My Lords, it is the duty of the industrial tribunal to look into the circumstances surrounding the case and to come to some adjudication on whether or not compensation should be paid at that time.

§ Lord Meston
My Lords, is not the situation caused by a shortage of clerical staff to process the increasing number of applications to tribunals? Is that situation hindered by the present embargo on the use of part-time tribunal chairmen? Will those problems be further increased when the Government activate the power to extend the jurisdiction of the tribunal—however welcome that extension may be?

§ Viscount Ullswater
My Lords, I have tried to indicate that this pressure on the budget is caused by an increasing number of cases being referred to industrial tribunals. In order to remain within the budget, one way of limiting the amount of public expenditure has been to restrict the working of some part-time chairmen. I hope that the increase in the budget that I have announced will allow the part-time chairmen to resume their hearings, but that will be at the discretion of the president of the industrial tribunals.

§ Lord Rochester
My Lords, what are the Government doing to improve the quality and effectiveness of the pre-hearing reviews that take place prior to industrial tribunal hearings?

§ Viscount Ullswater
My Lords, that is a rather different question. I am not aware that there are complaints about that.

§ Baroness Turner of Camden
My Lords, on the issue of dismissed employees, the Minister will be aware that industrial tribunals have the power to order reinstatement. Sometimes that is not a widely used power. On the other hand, is it not a farce to imagine that reinstatement can be a solution if there has been 1844 a waiting time of six to eight months? Cannot further consideration be given to providing extra resources if there are so many more cases?

§ Viscount Ullswater
My Lords, the Government remain committed to the principle of industrial tribunals as a means of resolving disputes in the workplace. They are intended as a speedy, inexpensive and informal way of resolving disputes.
The noble Baroness will be aware that the decisions about reinstatement are very few. The Government remain committed to the principle of solving these disputes before industrial tribunals.

§ Baroness Gardner of Parkes
My Lords, as one who sits as a member of an industrial tribunal, can the Minister reconcile the fact that we have been told that we can now sit only half as frequently when there are so many more cases?

§ Viscount Ullswater
My Lords, the lay membership of the industrial tribunal panel is quite extensive. The regular chairmen are sitting as before. The restriction applies only to the number of sittings of part-time chairmen.