April 2014
Early Conciliation through ACAS in respect of Employment Disputes
On 6 April 2014 a new ACAS Early
Conciliation Scheme will operate on a voluntary basis for a month before
becoming a mandatory part of the Employment Tribunal application process.
From 6 May 2014 it will be
compulsory for most potential claimants to the Employment Tribunal to contact
ACAS and make at least some attempt to reach a settlement before applying to
the Employment Tribunal.
The pre-claim conciliation gives
potential claimants the opportunity to explore a resolution of their claim
before they have to pay a fee to the tribunal to issue proceedings. It will also force the parties to think about
settlement at the outset. It is an
attempt to facilitate employers and employees to sort out their differences at
a very early stage.
The procedure is relatively
straightforward.
Before lodging a claim with the
Employment Tribunal a potential claimant must send ACAS an Early Conciliation
(EC) form either online or by hard copy.
ACAS is under a duty to make
reasonable attempts to contact the prospective claimant within 2 working days
to find out the nature of the claim and establish if a claimant wishes to
conciliate. If the claimant consents,
ACAS must make reasonable attempts to contact the respondent and conciliate a
settlement.
The conciliator has up to a
calendar month from the date on which ACAS receives the EC form to facilitate a
settlement. However, that period can be
extended by up to 2 weeks if the ACAS officer is of the opinion that there is a
reasonable prospect of achieving a settlement.
If settlement is reached, the
terms will be set out in writing by ACAS for the potential claimant and
respondent to sign.
If a settlement is not reached,
or if either prospective party does not wish to take part in conciliation, ACAS
will issue an EC certificate to record that conciliation has come to an
end. When the claimant receives an EC
certificate they are free to lodge a claim with the Tribunal.
Where the allegation is unfair
dismissal, the ACAS officer has a particular duty to explore whether re-instatement
or re-engagement can be achieved and can only promote a settlement involving
compensation being paid if they are of the view that it is not possible or
where the claimant does not wish to be re-instated or re-engaged.
The new regime provides for an
extension of the time limit for lodging a claim with the Tribunal (which is
usually 3 months) to allow for any conciliation period. The clock stops the day after the claimant
contacts ACAS and restarts on the day after the claimant receives the EC
certificate. If a claimant contacts ACAS
when there is less than one month of the time limit for lodging a claim with
the Tribunal to go, they get some extra time, namely a calendar month from the
day they receive the EC certificate.
If you would like us to assist
you with this process, please contact Keith Parr, Employment Partner, on 01772
253841, kgp@bsglaw.co.uk or by post.
