What amounts to a grievance letter - how wide can it go!

The cases on what amounts to a statutory grievance procedure are now coming through the Tribunal thick and fast. The main reason being that the raising of a grievance extends the normal time limits for submitting a claim from three months less a day to six months less a day.

The case of Arnold Clark Automobiles v Stewart & others heard by the EAT shows how wide the interpretation of what a grievance is can be.

The EAT found that a solicitor’s letter before action, which was adversarial rather than conciliatory and which claimed financial compensation rather than invoking a grievance, amounted to a grievance letter in accordance with s32 of the Employment Act 2002. This was even though the letter was headed ‘without prejudice’ and so normally would not even be admissible in proceedings.

This exceedingly wide interpretation of what amounted to a grievance enabled the Claimant to pursue his claim in the tribunal.

The further sting in the tail for employers is that if they then fail to invite the now ex-employee to a meeting to discuss the ‘grievance’ any compensation that the Claimant is then awarded can be increased by up to 50%.