§ Mr. Adleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many cases have been heard before industrial tribunals in each month since the passage of the Employment Protection Act.
§ Mr. Harold WalkerThe Employment Protection Act received the Royal Assent on 12th November 1975. The number of cases heard by tribunals since 1st November 1975 is as follows:
England and Wales Scotland November 1975 … 1,180 131 December 1975 … 1,289 106 January 1976 … 1,205 162 February 1976 … 1,550 143 March 1976 … 1,383 124 April 1976 … 1,634 129 May 1976 … 1,455 184
§ Mr. Adleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list, by employment category, the number of cases that have been heard by industrial tribunals since the passing of the Employment Protection Act.
§ Mr. Harold WalkerI regret that comprehensive statistics of this kind are not collected.
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§ Mr. Adleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment at how many places in the United Kingdom industrial tribunals are held; if he will list them; and if he will list the number of full-time and part-time staff employed at each location, together with their total annual salaries and wages.
§ Mr. Harold WalkerIndustrial tribunals are held at 26 principal locations in Great Britain. In addition regular sittings are held in 32 other locations; and occasional sittings are held in other places when required. The 26 principal locations, together with details of full-and part-time staff employed at those locations, excluding chairmen and lay members of the tribunals, are:
Full-time Part-time England and Wales London (3 offices) … 189 6 Ashford (Kent) … 12 — Brighton … 5 1 Birmingham … 31 1 Shrewsbury … 3 — Bristol … 14 — Bury St. Edmunds … 16 5 Bedford … 3 — Cambridge … 4 — Cardiff … 18 1 Exeter … 9 1 Leeds … 20 3 Liverpool … 16 — Manchester … 40 1 Newcastle … 19 — Middlesbrough … 4 — Nottingham … 11 — Derby … 2 — Leicester … 2 — Sheffield … 14 — Southampton … 12 — Sub-total England and Wales … 444 19 Scotland Glasgow … 34 — Dundee … 3 — Aberdeen … 3 — Edinburgh … 5 — Sub-total Scotland … 45 — Salaries and wages for the staff for the financial year 1975–76 totalled about £1,020,000.
§ Mr. Adleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the total number of cases brought before industrial tribunals since the passage of the Employment Protection Act; and how many have found in favour of the employee and the employer, respectively.
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§ Mr. Harold WalkerThe Employment Protection Act received the Royal Assent on 12th November 1975. The number of cases heard by industrial tribunals in the period 1st November 1975 to 28th May 1976 was 10,675. Comprehensive information as to the outcome of cases is not available.
§ Mr. Adleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list the people now appointed to serve, as chairmen and as representatives of employees and employer interests, on the panels of industrial tribunals.
§ Mr. Harold WalkerI have arranged with the Lord Chancellor for a list of chairmen to be published in theOfficial Report. A list of panel members appointed between 1965 and 1975 is available in the House of Commons Library. A revised list is in course of preparation.
§ Mr. Adleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if there are circum- stances under which employers can claim costs of fighting cases before industrial tribunals; and, if so, on how many occasions these circumstances have pertained since the passage of the Employment Protection Act.
§ Mr. Harold WalkerAn industrial tribunal has power to award costs where in its opinion a party, whether employee or employer, has acted frivolously or vexatiously. Information about the number of occasions on which this power has been used is not available.
§ Mr. Adleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many working man-hours he estimates have been lost by people having to appear before Industrial tribunals since the passing of the Employment Protection Act.
§ Mr. Harold WalkerThis information is not available.
§ Mr. Adleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he is satisfied with the operation of industrial tribunals following the passage of the Employment Protection Act; if he has any plans to allow employers to bring cases before the courts, such as happens in the Federal Republic of Germany; and if he will make a statement.
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§ Mr. Harold WalkerI am satisfied with the operation of the industrial tribunals. Employers, like other parties, can appeal on a question of law arising from any decision of an industrial tribunal to the Employment Appeal Tribunal; and a further appeal lies with leave to the Court of Appeal, or as the case may be, the Court of Session. The Government has no plans to alter these arrangements.