Why staff are increasingly turning to legal action against their employer

Why staff are increasingly turning to legal action against their employer

A study by a global risk management firm, Gallagher, has shown how employee disputes have become the most common legal issue for businesses.

Over the past five years, three-quarters of firms surveyed (764 large UK businesses) had seen a growth in legal cases against them (28% had seen an increase of more than 40%). 38% were due to employee disputes, involving hundreds of thousands or even millions of pounds in costs for individual employers.

Litigious climate

The main causes for employees turning to employment tribunals and other legal action are thought to be the cost of living, economic instability and, in general, a greater willingness in society to look for legal redress. 60% of business leaders expect further growth in the number of cases over the coming year.

In addition to the financial costs, employers have also flagged the damage to reputation, operations and use of management time. The sectors most affected are said to be energy, scientific operations, IT, and finance.

Changing relationships

EAPA UK chair, Karl Bennett said: “Where there are good relationships within an organisation, feelings of trust and belonging, then people are far less likely to feel the need to turn to the law. They would much rather deal with conflict in an informal way, and will have enough faith in management to do so. “A sense of wellbeing, and of an employer actively supporting and being committed to employee wellbeing, is fundamental to relationships. Making full use of EAP services, making sure concerns and worries are dealt with at an early stage, is so important to defusing the levels of stress and tension that lead to an escalation of situations.”