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Lodging a claim at the Industrial Tribunal or Fair Employment Tribunal
- When should I make a claim at the Industrial Tribunal or the Fair Employment Tribunal?
- How do I make a claim at the Industrial Tribunal or the Fair Employment Tribunal?
- What should I write in my claim form?
- What is a tribunal?
- How long will it take for my case to be heard?
- What are the time limits for making a claim?
- What happens when the claim form is lodged?
- What will the Respondent have to do after the claim is lodged?
- What happens next at the Industrial Tribunal or Fair Employment Tribunal?
- Can I get assistance from the Equality Commission?
- Can I get legal aid to bring a claim to the tribunals?
- Can I change my mind after I have lodged my claim?
- Will I have to pay costs at the tribunals if I lose my case?
- Where can I get more advice?
- If I make a claim at the Industrial Tribunal or the Fair Employment Tribunal will it be confidential?
- I have a disability or special need(s). Can the Industrial Tribunal or the Fair Employment Tribunal assist me?
- What if my employer treats me less favourably because I have lodged a claim?
1. When should I make a claim at the Industrial Tribunal or the Fair Employment Tribunal?
If you believe you have been discriminated against at work or when you have applied for a job then you may be able to take your employer or prospective employer to a tribunal. It can be unlawful for an employer or prospective employer to treat you less favourably than someone else because of your age, race, sex, age, married status, sexual orientation, religious belief or political opinion or because you have a disability.
However, before you do so, you should consider whether you need to use your employer’s grievance procedure. In most cases, if you fail to use, or complete the grievance procedure the Tribunal can reduce any award of compensation by up to 50%.
2. How do I make a claim at the Industrial Tribunal or the Fair Employment Tribunal?
You should first complete the Claim Form and return it to the Office of the Industrial Tribunals and Fair Employment (OITFET). The Office is based at:
Office of the Industrial Tribunals and Fair Employment Tribunal
Killymeal House
2 Cromac Quay
Ormeau Road
BELFAST
BT7 2JD
Tel. 028 9032 7666
You can also obtain claim forms from your local Job Centre, the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland, or your local Citizens Advice Bureau. At this time these forms are not downloadable from these websites, so you will have to call in or telephone to request copies.
The tribunal will only accept applications on the correct form.
You do not have to pay a fee or charge in order to lodge a claim at the tribunal.
3. What should I write in my claim form?
You should set out full details of the grounds of your complaint on the claim form. You should complete the form describing, in your own words, full details of all matters relating to the discrimination which you believe you have been subjected to. You should try to set out the details of your complaint in the order in which they actually occurred giving the relevant dates where possible. You cannot raise anything at a tribunal hearing that you have not included in your claim form.
4. What is a Tribunal?
The Industrial Tribunal and the Fair Employment Tribunal are independent judicial bodies which hear complaints of discrimination. The tribunal is like a court but the proceedings are not as formal.
Whether your case should go before an Industrial Tribunal or a Fair Employment Tribunal will depend on the type of complaint which you make.
The tribunal sits as a panel of three members with a legally qualified chairperson, an employer’s representative and an employee’s representative.
The tribunal is there to decide on your complaint and does not offer legal advice. Almost all tribunal hearings are open to the public. The overriding objective of the tribunals is to deal with cases justly, ensure the parties are on an equal footing, save expense and deal with cases promptly and fairly.
In the Fair Employment Tribunal and the Industrial Tribunal it is up to you, the claimant, to persuade the tribunal that you have been subjected to unlawful discrimination.
5. How long will it take for my case to be heard?
Some cases take longer than others to be heard by the tribunal. Delays can occur because the case is particularly complex or because the parties are trying to obtain full details of the case from each other. You should expect that your case will be heard by the tribunal within between six and nine months from the date on which you made the claim.
6. What are the time limits for making a claim?
The time limit for bringing a claim before the tribunal can be as short as three months from the date of the act you are complaining about. In order to be within the time limit, you should make a note of the date of the incident about which you are complaining. The last day on which you should lodge proceedings with the tribunal will be three months after that date, minus one day. For example, the act you are complaining about occurred on 2 June 2005, the last day on which you can lodge a claim form will be 1 September 2005. It is advisable to lodge your proceedings promptly and not to wait until the last possible moment.
If your time limit has expired the tribunal has discretion to extend the time for you to lodge your claim; this is used sparingly and it is unwise to assume that an extension will be granted.
7. What happens when the claim form is lodged?
Once you have sent your claim form to the tribunal you have started the legal proceedings. You should receive a letter of notification from the Office of the Industrial Tribunal and Fair Employment Tribunal (OITFET). The tribunal will have allocated a case number to your application and you should quote this case number whenever you contact the tribunal about your case or when you write to the employer about the case. If you have not had an acknowledgement from OITFET within two weeks of lodging your claim form you should contact:
The Secretary of the Tribunals
Office of the Industrial Tribunals and Fair Employment Tribunal
Killymeal House
2 Cromac Quay
Ormeau Road
BELFAST
BT7 2JD
Tel: 028 9032 7666
If you change your address you should notify the tribunal to ensure that all important correspondence is sent to you. From this stage you will be described as the Claimant in the case and the employer will be described as the Respondent.
In most cases the tribunal will also send a copy of your claim form to the Labour Relations Agency (LRA). They will write to you and may attempt to resolve the dispute between you and the employer. The LRA is based at:
Labour Relations Agency
2-8 Gordon Street
Belfast
BT1 2LG
Tel: 028 9032 1442
8. What will the Respondent have to do after the claim is lodged?
The tribunal will contact the Respondent about the claim. Once the tribunal has received your claim form, they will send a copy of it to the Respondent within five working days. The tribunal will also send a Response Form to the employer. The tribunal will require the Respondent to complete and lodge their response form within 28 days of notification of the claim. The response form is the document which replies to the claim form which you have sent to the tribunal. The tribunal requires the Respondent to provide certain
- their full name and address;
- whether they want to defend all or part of the claim;
- the grounds on which they intend to defend the claim.
If the Respondent does not include this required information then the response form will be returned. The tribunal will continue to process your claim and may make a judgment in relation to your claim.
A copy of the response form will be sent to you. You should examine this document carefully as this indicates how the Respondent intends to defend the claim which you have lodged. You may want to ask further questions or seek documents in light of what the Respondent has said on the response form.
9. What happens next at the Industrial Tribunal or the Fair Employment Tribunal?
Once the tribunal has received a claim form from you and a response form from the Respondent it will send you a standard form of directions. These are instructions relating to the case and tell you what you must do next. The directions should give you a timescale within which you must take certain actions. You should take care to comply with directions issued by the tribunal. If you cannot comply with a particular direction, or think that you should not, you should make the tribunal aware of this as soon as possible, but in any event within 14 days of receiving the directions. If the tribunal does not hear any objection from you within this period, it will assume that you agree with the directions.
The tribunal may require you to attend a preliminary hearing or a directions hearing or a case management discussion before the actual hearing of your case. This is usually done to try to clarify issues between the parties and to decide when the case can be heard and how long it is likely to take. If the tribunal writes to you asking you to attend such a hearing you should make sure that you attend as matters which are important to your claim will be discussed. Similarly, if the tribunal or the Respondent writes to you seeking further
10. Can I get assistance from the Equality Commission?
The Equality Commission will help you with advice and guidance on your rights under the law and will help you to prepare and lodge your claim. You can apply to the Commission for assistance by way of representation to take your case and, in some cases, the Commission will grant assistance to your case. This means that the Equality Commission will act as your legal representative
The Equality Commission is a separate body from the tribunal. If you have contacted the Commission about your case or applied for assistance this does not mean that you have lodged a claim with the tribunal.
11. Can I get legal aid to bring a claim to the Industrial Tribunal or the Fair Employment Tribunal?
The
12. Can I change my mind after I have lodged my claim?
Yes. You can withdraw your claim from the tribunal. If you withdraw your claim at an early stage in the proceedings there is not usually any cost penalty. However, if you withdraw your claim at a very late stage in the proceedings, for example, just before the hearing, then you may be ordered to pay costs by the tribunal.
13. Wll I have to pay costs at the Tribunals if I lose my case?
Usually each party will pay their own costs regardless of the outcome of the case. The tribunal may order you to make a payment towards the respondent’s costs in certain circumstances:
- If you have conducted your case in an unreasonable way by acting vexatiously, abusively or disruptively.
- You have brought a case which is misconceived.
Similarly, if a respondent acts unreasonably in the conduct of the case, for example, by telling you that you will have to pay costs if you continue with your claim, then the tribunal may order the Respondent to pay costs. The maximum costs the tribunal can award against a party are £10,000. In practice awards of costs are much lower than this and the tribunal will take into account the claimant’s ability to pay.
14. Where can I get more advice?
You can bring a claim to a tribunal yourself without any legal representation. The tribunal is experienced in dealing with claimants who are representing themselves. You do not have to have a lawyer in order to make your claim. However, some of the rules relating to matters like time limits can be complex and confusing. If you need assistance in understanding these rules or other matters relating to your case you may be able to obtain legal advice from the following organisations:
Equality Commission for NI
Equality House
7-9 Shaftesbury Square
Belfast
BT2 7DP
Tel: 028 9050 0600
Labour Relations Agency
2-8 Gordon Street
Belfast
BT1 2LG
Tel: 028 9032 1442
Citizens Advice Bureaux
Regional Office
46 Donegall Pass
Belfast
BT7 1BS
Tel: 028 9023 1120
Law Centre (NI)
24 Donegall Street
Belfast
BT1 2GY
Tel: 028 9024 4401
Lawyers Pro Bono Unit
The Bar Library
91 Chichester Street
Belfast
BT1 3JQ
Tel: 028 9056 2385
15. If I make a claim at the Industrial Tribunal or the Fair Employment Tribunal will it be confidential?
Information about claims made at the tribunal is published in a register which is available to the public and the media. This register states the case reference number, the date the case was lodged, the name of the claimant, the name of the respondent, the type of case, the outcome and the date of the outcome.
In very limited circumstances, for example, possibly in sexual harassment or sexual orientation cases, anonymity can be preserved.
16. I have a disability/special needs. Can the Industrial Tribunal or the Fair Employment Tribunal assist me?
If you or anyone going to a tribunal has a disability or a particular need, you should contact the Tribunal to discuss the matter. Examples of help the Tribunal can provide include converting documents to Braille or larger print, providing information on audio tape and paying for sign- or foreign language interpreters. You should contact the tribunal as soon as possible so that they can help you.
17. What if my employer treats me less favourably because I have lodged a claim?
The law that protects you from being discriminated against also protects you from being treated less favourably because you have done something in connection with that law. Less favourable treatment by your employer because you have, for example, lodged a claim against your employer is known as victimisation. If you are victimised by your employer, then this may give rise to a separate and fresh claim.
Example
Frank gave evidence at the hearing of a colleague’s discrimination complaint against their employer. He subsequently applied for a promotion but despite being suitably qualified for the position, Frank is not shortlisted.
If the reason for this treatment is that Frank was a witness in that case, then the employer’s failure to shortlist him may amount to victimisation.
Telephone: 028 90 500 600 Textphone: 028 90 500 589
Fax: 028 90 248 687 Email: information@equalityni.org
