Episode 17 - Employment Tribunals in crisis: The blind spot in the ‘New Deal for Working People’

Episode 17: Employment Tribunals in Crisis – The Blind Spot in the New Deal for Working People

In this episode of We Can Work It Out, Dr Jonathan Lord is joined by Andrei Savitski, Community Research and Data Officer at the Work Rights Centre, to discuss one of the most pressing yet overlooked challenges facing employment rights in Britain: the growing crisis within the Employment Tribunal system. Drawing on the findings of the Work Rights Centre's influential report, Employment Tribunals in Crisis, the conversation examines why access to workplace justice is becoming increasingly difficult and what this means for workers, employers and the Government's ambitious programme of employment law reform.

Andrei begins by explaining the motivation behind the report, describing how repeated experiences of lengthy delays, postponed hearings and administrative failures affecting clients prompted the research. The discussion explores why employment tribunals receive relatively little public attention despite playing a fundamental role in enforcing employment rights. As Andrei argues, rights only have value if workers can realistically enforce them.

A major focus of the episode is the scale of the current backlog. Using the latest tribunal statistics, Andrei explains how the number of new claims entering the system is now consistently exceeding the number being resolved, causing waiting times to increase dramatically. Contrary to popular assumptions, he argues that the problem is not excessive numbers of claims but rather the tribunal system's inability to dispose of cases efficiently. The conversation examines the data behind judicial shortages, regional disparities, administrative pressures and the growing complexity of employment claims, particularly discrimination and whistleblowing cases.

This episode provides an evidence-based examination of one of the most important issues facing employment law today. Whether you are an academic, legal practitioner, HR professional, policymaker, trade unionist or simply interested in the future of workplace justice, it offers valuable insight into why Employment Tribunals matter and why reforming the system may be the missing piece in delivering meaningful employment rights. Enjoy the discussion.