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by Sarah Bull, solicitor at Bates Wells & Braithwaite
The Employment Act 2008 has this week received Royal Assent and from April 2009 it will repeal the Statutory Dispute Resolution Procedures. The removal of the procedures will make employers lives much easier. However it is important to remember that they are being replaced by a new ACAS Code of Practice.
The Code is short and easy to read. It provides practical guidance to employers, employees and their representatives and sets out principles for handling disciplinary and grievance situations in the workplace.
Unlike the Statutory Dispute Procedures it will not apply to dismissals due to redundancy or to the non-renewal of fixed term contracts on their expiry. There will however be separate ACAS guidance for those situations.
Employers should always ensure that they follow the ACAS code in relevant cases since employment tribunals will be able to take into account the compliance or lack of with the Code and adjust any tribunal awards by up to 25% for unreasonable failure to comply with any provision of the Code.
The right to be accompanied to disciplinary and grievance hearings remains unchanged.
Employers ought to digest the Code now so that they are ready for April 2009 when it comes into force.
The key principles in the Code are:
- Employers and employees should raise and deal with issues promptly and should not unreasonably delay meetings, decisions or confirmation of those decisions.
- Employers and employees should act consistently.
- Employers should carry out any necessary investigations, to establish the facts of the case.
- Employers should inform employees of the basis of the problem and give them an opportunity to put their case in response before any decisions are made.
Sarah Bull is a solicitor at Bates Wells & Braithwaite London LLP. Bates Wells and Braithwaite will be running training sessions on the Code. For information about these sessions, please look at the BWB website.