Employment tribunal experiences - was it awful?

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Hi everyone,

I've raised a grievance at work and it's gone back and forward; they're digging their heels in and I think I'm going to have to take it further.

I really dislike confrontation so this whole thing is my worst nightmare. Is an employment tribunal a terrible ordeal? Is it worth it, in your experience? If mediation doesn't resolve the issue, is it better to just accept it and move on or was it worth fighting, in your case?

I'm just trying to get a feel for whether people think they did the right thing by going to tribunal, or if they regretted it in the end.

It is 100% important to know what the grievance is. Mediation is the way to go first and of course it takes two people to dig their heels in and not negotiate. It’s worth it with a rock solid case.

went through the tribunal process, settled out of court for a very high figure. I had help from my union though - local reps pretty useless but senior union official was great (I pushed for their input).

You do need to watch the timings though. you have 3 months minus 1 day to submit a tribunal claim, 4 months if you go through acas conciliation which I believe adds up to 4 weeks extra time.

This timescale is from the last date of discrimination and I found that my HR department were stalling (I believe deliberately) with the grievance process so that I would be out of time. However, they did keep fucking up which just gave me more evidence and I could put new claims in.

Tribunals do expect you to have tried the grievance process but as I said, that can lead to you being out of time, especially if your employer has several stages in their grievance process.

Your employer will put a lot of pressure on you and your rep to get you to settle things informally.

It is extremely stressful. I went on sick leave, was suicidal, diagnosed with PTSD and anxiety, was off work for 2 months, got a large payout and I'm about to start a new job but nervous as hell. New job is temporary and lower paid which kind of bothers me as I feel like my career has suffered as a result, but on the other hand, I don't think I am emotionally ready for something 'hard' right now.

Anyway, definitely get help from a union and/or join one before you start any grievance.

off work for 2 YEARS that should read!

I'd like to spill the beans, @PresentingPercy, but I know that several of my colleagues use mumsnet and the individual circumstances are possibly outing. I realise I can't get any individual advice as a result, which is why I'm just curious as to whether people regretted taking a dispute so far.

I would love to resolve it without resorting to extreme measures but I don't think that's going to happen. My choice will probably be to either accept what they've done or go to tribunal. Neither of which appeals.

@jabbathebutt thank you for sharing your experience. It sounds like it massively took a toll on you; and I fear that my career will suffer as yours has.

I think my firm might be stalling too - not helped by the fact the union never returns my calls, I've been trying to speak to someone for a week.

Good luck in your new job - hopefully it's a stepping stone back to where you should be

I'm a lawyer specialising in employment law....the vast vast majority of cases settle, and you could always put in a claim knowing that you would never in fact take it to tribunal (eg by withdrawing it a week before the hearing), which is more common than you think, although obv be quiet if that's your plan.

Do be careful re deadlines though - a slow grievance procedure will not give you extra time to put in your claim.

I have been to employment tribunal twice, the second time as a Union member.
I took a settlement on both, because you need to be mindful of not pursuing a claim further than is necessary when you have already been made a reasonable offer.
It is worth doing if you have been treated unfairly. I would recommend doing some reading on employment law so you know where you stand and are then less likely to be fobbed off.

I also went twice, and remained working at the same place. I went to keep my job and did. Also was paid compensation for discrimination and victimisation.

It was a truly horrific experience, but would have been less so if it wasn't related to such personal mental health stuff and if I hadn't been still working there.

If I had left the job already, it would have been much easier.

I think crap employers need holding to account. It gave me self-respect to challenge the way I was treated and it has made my boss treat others better and follow the law.

I did settle one of the claims, after a 9-day liability hearing with most results in my favour, before the remedy hearing. The other went to a remedy hearing.

Most claims do not even get to a liability hearing as people settle. Judicial mediation is also available for some types of cases.

I have brought cases against two employers both with the assistance of my union. Both were settled out of court with an NDA so I cant give details. Both involved disability issues. In both cases employers violated their own procedures and more or less walked into the trap of a paper trail being created. Management at various levels kicking legitimate complaints into the long grass rather than dealing with them.

One rather disturbing factor is that the NDA is supposed to be binding on both parties. However, when negotiating with the second employer they were aware of the fact that there had been a previous settlement with another employer. It seems there had been a bit of backstairs gossiping among HR people in the different organizations.

Its amazing what a subject access can reveal in the way of snitches and backstabbers.

I’ve attended an employment tribunal with a friend. The whole process running up to the hearing was stressful, it was unfair dismissal so they had already left their job. They won their case, not for a large amount, but didn’t regret it.

The actual hearing was formal with a lot of questions about the law and procedure, not as formal as crown court but similar in the fact that the judge was sat at height, the employer and my friends solicitor were sat at separate tables in front and my friend was called to a witness table alone.

It was also public so there were many people watching while my friend gave evidence. Much of that evidence was about a disability so very personal and very uncomfortable to speak out with an audience present.

You can apply for a closed hearing, anonymity or partial versions of both for disability or sexual assault-related hearings, but it's pretty rare.

Agree with the pp about subject access requests. Can be very revealing (if they fully comply!)

I was involved at one at work.

It was horrendous.

It is like a court, you get questioned by judges, an employer will probably have a barrister, compiling the documents and statements was a nightmare, and it cost the respective parties a fortune.

I would always avoid, now, whether as employer or claimant. Unless there was a really seriously matter at stake and significant money.

But maybe others have had more straightforward / simple procedures.

Have you got Union backing? Does your home contents insurance cover you for legal fees in employment cases? Have you spoken to ACAS?

I agree re: getting a SAR done. I did multiple. It was horrific what I found out was being said and done regarding myself. And ever SAR was worse, you'd think they'd learn not to record stuff but they were thick.

I would, however, advise anyone considering a grievance or a claim, to make a SAR and use that evidence.

It’s pretty stressful and if you don’t have a representative you may very quickly feel out of your depth with all the procedure. Plus tribunals have huge backlogs so God knows when you’ll get a hearing so it’ll likely be hanging over you with no resolution a long time.

Also the hearings are in public as others have said albeit not just now I guess. Plus all decisions are published online. Even if you settle and withdraw your claim it will still be published.

Well, my firm hasn't complied with its own grievance procedure, and I'm running out of time now. I'm going to contact my union one more time, as well as consult an employment solicitor.

It's grim and I feel sick to my stomach.

Before you expend effort and money, make sure you tick all the right boxes:

• is your grievance clear what your issues are, who they are aimed at and what you expect the outcome to be?

• have you worked there as a permanent employee for at least 2 years?

• if you haven't worked there for at least 2 years, is your grievance related to discrimination against a protected characteristic, and do you have reasonable evidence that they cannot argue against. If you have witnesses are they willing to support you.

• is the last incident you have contentions about within the 3 months less 1 day time limit?

If you don't satisfy these criteria, you shouldn't take things forward through tribunal, but you could continue to work with your employer to try to resolve the matter informally with them.

Hi @daisychain01 - yes, the issue meets all those criteria.

I don't WANT to take this further, but it's incredibly unfair AND I've been financially impacted by it. I can roll with a lot of punches in the tough times we're living in, but not this one.