Acas reports on unfair dismissals

The recession has resulted in a 22 per cent increase in unfair dismissal conciliation cases, a new report has noted.

Indeed, the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) has said that it received 55,000 cases over the last year which involved a claim for unfair dismissal, a rise of nearly 12,000 on the previous year’s report.

Acas also noted that it received over 78,000 conciliation cases from the Employment Tribunal Service over the last year, an 18 per cent increase when compared to the previous year.

Working under the government’s Dispute Resolution Review, Acas prepared its services to help people resolve disputes at an earlier stage.

Chairperson of Acas Ed Sweeney said: “We are confident that the new guidelines we implemented on dealing with dispute resolution and workplace conflict will have a positive impact over the next year.”

He added this could prevent expensive employment tribunals from taking place.

Acas offers services including training, mediation, advice and business and skills solutions.