Fees could be levied upon employees fighting unfair dismissal and discrimination cases from 29 July 2013, however Britain’s biggest public sector union, Unison, is attempting to stop the “brutal” charges being introduced.
The recent publication of an “indicative timetable” by The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills outlined when employment law changes under the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 would come into play.
Unison has applied to the High Court in London for a judicial review to try and stop the proposed Ministry of Justice charges – which could cost an employee wanting to launch an employment tribunal up to £1,000 – from being launched.
The union fears that the new charges will prevent thousands of workers who have genuine workplace grievances from seeking the justice they deserve.
Unison general secretary, Dave Prentis, spoke at the union’s annual conference, with The Mirror reporting him as saying: “It is completely wrong for access to the law and employment justice to be based on what you can or cannot afford.
“The Government should not put a price on justice – that is why UNISON is calling for a Judicial Review. These charges are a blatant attempt to stop working people from exercising their employment rights. It will give unscrupulous employers the green light to ride roughshod over employees’ already very basic, rights at work,” Mr Prentis added.
According to Government figures, there were 186,000 cases brought before employment tribunals between April 2011 and March of last year, and the Government is hoping that the implementation of the charges may lower this number considerably.