What is the Employment Tribunal in the UK?

The Employment Tribunal is a specialist court that hears employment law disputes between employers and employees (and workers). It is independent of government and ACAS. Unlike civil courts, it has its own rules, flexible procedures, and specialist legal expertise. Most hearings are open to the public and reported online.

The most common claims are unfair dismissal, discrimination (under the Equality Act 2010), unlawful deduction from wages, breach of contract, and failure to pay statutory entitlements (redundancy pay, holiday pay, statutory sick pay). Before starting a Tribunal claim, you must contact ACAS for early conciliation — this pauses the time limit while ACAS tries to facilitate a settlement.

Time limits are strict: most claims must be brought within 3 months less one day of the act you are complaining about (e.g. the date of dismissal). Missing the deadline almost always means losing the right to claim — Tribunals extend time only where it was not reasonably practicable to comply. There is no fee to bring a claim (fees were abolished in 2017).