Tribunals | Claimants to wait 14 months for court hearings

Delays at employment tribunals are continuing to increase, with discrimination cases taking up to 14 months to appear in a court hearing, with some not due to take place until December 2021.

According to research by employment law firm GQ|Littler, London South employment tribunal is not listing court hearings for discrimination cases until December 2021. Meanwhile Southampton is listing hearings for August 2021 and Bristol for April 2021.

London Central employment tribunal cited high workloads and a shortage of staff as reasons behind the delays. This has also contributed to telephone hold times spanning five hours for those looking to discuss hearings with law professionals.

These delays, however, mean that employers are set to face months of uncertainty over the outcome of the claim, which is also leading to senior management teams becoming distracted by other issues.