How To Avoid The Employment Tribunal
How do I dismiss someone without getting sued?
Unfortunately, it doesn’t cost an aggrieved employee anything to contact ACAS or lodge a claim against you, and so if they feel that you have treated them unfairly, they are likely to give it a shot, even with a weak claim. They will have time, nothing to lose and a grudge that will fuel a fight with you.
You, on the other hand, are running a business. Defending a Tribunal claim consumes days, or even weeks, of your time, and that’s just the time you’ll spend preparing for a hearing. You’ll waste months talking to colleagues, friends and family members and thinking about it until the hearing takes place, which could be in a year or more’s time.
And then you must build your defence when you don’t even remember what happened yesterday, let alone the events of a dismissal last year. And you didn’t put anything in writing either to act as an aide memoire.
If you lose, you’ve got to factor in the humiliation, damage to your reputation, the compensation that may be awarded to your ex-employee, and the possibility of paying their legal fees as well if the Judge orders you to do so.
Even if you have legal expenses insurance, unless the underwriters are prepared to cover you, defending the claim yourself could cost you thousands of pounds. By the way, they are unlikely to pay for your representation if you didn’t have a fair reason for dismissal and you failed to follow a fair process.
Legal fees for the preparation and attendance at a one-day Tribunal hearing could be in the region of £10,000. The average award of compensation for unfair dismissal is around £11,000, although that can be up to a year’s net pay, and is uncapped if you have discriminated against your employee.
So, before we factor in the value of your time and any other associated costs, we’re already at £21k! Ouch!
If you’ve got a troublesome employee and you want them out now; or you need to make changes that you know your staff won’t like and you want to avoid the backlash; or you’re a virtuous employer who just wants to do the right thing by your staff as their employment comes to an end, I’m glad you’re here, because that’s a sign that you’re a savvy employer.
Seeking expert advice on what to do before you embark on your next HR project, rather than calling in the lawyers when it has all gone horribly wrong is a smart move for you and your business.
After 20 years’ experience as a solicitor, advising business owners and people managers on employment law strategy, I know that HR issues are more likely to fester rather than disappear without intervention.
Whether it’s the poor performer who will continue to underperform, the employee with the poor interpersonal skills who with continue to annoy their colleagues, or the employee with poor conduct that goes unchallenged, unless they are told that fact and given a fair opportunity to remedy the issue, things will not improve.
Get unstuck now in 5 simple steps
TALK
You need to speak to a people management expert about your issue, dilemma or whatever you want to do, particularly if it may result in the end of employment relationship.
OPTIONS
There’s often more than one way to reach your desired outcome and so you need to know what your options, are and to choose the one that works best for the business in the circumstances.
PLAN
You need to map out the steps to reach your goal and prepare a timetable for action. Start with what you want to achieve, set a deadline, then work backwards from there.
SUPPORT
Find an ally who understands HR strategy. Managing employee relations can be a minefield, but not with the right supporter who can coach and advise you behind the scenes as you follow the plan.
EVALUATE
Wrap up your process, review the impact of the changes that you have made on your workforce and the business, then carry out any necessary follow up action.
Trust the process
The choice is yours. Are you going to plough ahead regardless and hope that you get away with it again this time? Or are you going to improve your chances of avoiding a nightmarish post-employment battle, blowing thousands of pounds in fees and compensation by following my advice, which is to focus on what you want to achieve and why, seek advice, review your options, timetable your process, and get effective HR support whilst you go through it.
…or fast track your progress
If you want to cut to the chase, save yourself a lot of your time, hassle, and money figuring things out the hard way, BOOK YOUR 20 MINUTE COMPLIMENTARY CLARITY CALL in my schedule now.
During our call, we’ll establish exactly what you want to achieve, and I’ll share my best advice on the quickest, most commercial, and painless way to do that. And if we can avoid red tape and drawn-out HR processes, we will!
Nickie
