UK Employment Tribunal Contacts: Addresses & Phone

Overview

Employment Tribunals are independent judicial bodies that decide disputes between employees, workers and their employers. They are separate from the ordinary civil courts and were set up specifically to deal with workplace issues in a way that is meant to be more accessible than traditional litigation.

Typical claims include unfair dismissal, unlawful discrimination, unpaid wages, holiday pay disputes, redundancy payment claims, whistleblowing complaints and breaches of contract relating to employment. The tribunal is made up of an Employment Judge, who may sit alone or alongside two lay members with experience of workplace matters from both the employee and employer side.

Hearings take place at regional tribunal centres, though many preliminary and case management hearings are now conducted by telephone or video. In Scotland, tribunals operate under a slightly different administrative structure but apply the same substantive employment law. England and Wales share a common system.

The tribunal can order compensation, reinstatement, re-engagement or declarations about a person's employment rights, depending on the type of claim and what the claimant asks for.

Key steps

1. Check whether Acas early conciliation applies. Before lodging most Employment Tribunal claims, you must contact Acas to notify them of a potential dispute. Acas will then offer a period of early conciliation, which is a free process aimed at resolving the matter without a hearing. You cannot issue a tribunal claim without an Acas certificate number in most cases.
2. Work out your deadline carefully. Employment Tribunal time limits are short and strict. Most claims, including unfair dismissal and discrimination, must be lodged within three months less one day of the act complained of, though Acas conciliation can extend this. Missing the deadline will usually end the claim before it begins, so diarise dates as soon as the issue arises.
3. Complete form ET1 and submit it. The claim form is called an ET1 and can be completed online or on paper. You will need to set out who the respondent is, what happened, what legal claims you are making, and what remedy you want. Accuracy matters because the tribunal and the employer will rely on what you write.
4. Identify the correct tribunal office. Claims are usually allocated to the office covering the area where the claimant worked or where the employer is based. If you are unsure, the contact details on this page will help you speak to the right administrative team, who can confirm jurisdiction and answer procedural questions.
5. Prepare for case management and hearing. Once a claim is accepted, the tribunal will issue directions about disclosure of documents, witness statements and a final hearing date. Both sides are expected to cooperate with these directions. Preparation is often the deciding factor in how a case turns out, so treat every deadline seriously.

Common questions