Employment tribunal compensation rises

Justice in the workplace has become a major legal issue

Compensation payments awarded by employment tribunals rose by 10% last year.

Employers should not allow themselves to be lulled into a false sense of security

Kate Godwin, IRS EOR

Total payments reached £3.88m in 2001, compared with £3.53m the previous year.

Research by IRS Equal Opportunities Review into the 329 discrimination cases where compensation was awarded found that the biggest increase in payments were disability cases, where the average payout rose by 85%.

The average awards in sex and race discrimination cases were lower than in 2000, although there were higher payouts in sexual harassment cases for injury to feelings.

Better environment

The 10% overall increase for compensation awards during 2001 was far short of the previous year's rise of 38%.

But IRS said there was still "concrete evidence" of the mounting costs to employers who continued to discriminate unlawfully.

According to a separate survey published by the Work Foundation on Monday, four in five organisations now have a code of conduct on bullying and harassment.

It said the "tide was turning" and employers were increasingly committed to creating work environments where employees no longer need to work in fear.

Complacency warning

But Kate Godwin, acting editor of Equal Opportunities Review (EOR) said that many of the awards made in employment tribunals were made against organisations that already had equal opportunities policies in place.

Ms Godwin said: "Employers across all sectors should not allow themselves to be lulled into a false sense of security when it comes to discrimination.

"Failure to address discrimination in the workplace could, ultimately, cost organisations and individuals far more than they ever imagined."

Over the last 10 years compensation awarded by tribunals has increased dramatically.

Since EOR first surveyed compensation awards in 1992, the overall total compensation was £600,000.

The trend is likely to continue, according to report, with payments expected to rise once again in 2002 following a number of record payouts.