Early Conciliation: First Quarter Update

ACAS have recently published the first set of statistics on early conciliation, since the new regime was introduced in April 2014.

Motivated by a desire to reduce the number of claims reaching the Employment Tribunal, a new system of Early Conciliation was introduced on the 6 April 2014.

Under the new system, it is now obligatory for all Claimants to contact ACAS before being able to submit a Tribunal claim. Once ACAS has been contacted by the Claimant, an appointed conciliator will contact the Defendant Company, to ascertain whether it is possible to settle the claim without the need for further litigation.

Neither party is forced to participate in the conciliation, once the process has been initiated. ACAS has a period of one month to finalise any settlement.

Although the scheme was launched on the 6 April 2014, it was only done so on an optional basis, until 5 May 2014 when it became mandatory.

The first update provided by ACAS, reports the total volume of notifications received by ACAS, in the first three months of the scheme.

The statistics show a dramatic increase in the use of ACAS, once the scheme became mandatory. ACAS confirm that the number of notifications received was in line with the expectations, based on number of claims issued in the employment Tribunal in the proceeding months.

Furthermore, ACAS reported on the actual take up on the offer of conciliation. As mentioned above, the conciliation process once initiated is entirely optional.

The statistics highlight that only a small proportion of matters involve conciliation which is rejected out of hand. Although a relatively low figure may be expected for employees, following the introduction of Tribunal fees, it is perhaps surprising that the figure for employers remains below 10%.

Finally, ACAS have also published fairly limited statistics on the actual outcomes of early conciliation.

ACAS confirm that, out of the 11,355 cases that completed their early conciliation referral, 16.5% (1,873) were settled via a formalised COT3 agreement. The figure does not include any matters that may have settled informally between the parties.

Furthermore, ACAS reports that, after initiating early conciliation and receiving feedback from the conciliator and other parties, around 19% of employees decide not to progress their claim any further. It is important to note that this figure is based on the employee’s feedback to the ACAS conciliator and may not reflect their actual intentions.

Early indicators suggest that parties are at least willing to participate in the conciliation process, even if this is motivated by the cost of litigation.

The Employment Tribunal has recently released the statistics for the second quarter, showing that the number of single claims issued is down one third on the first quarter. This arguably highlights the immediate impact which Early Conciliation has had on the volume of claims.