Employment Rights Bill unpacked: extension of time limits for bringing tribunal claims

As it stands, most tribunal claims (including those for dismissal, discrimination and unlawful deduction from wages) need to be brought within three months of the act complained of.

However, reform in this area has been on the horizon for some time and a pledge to increase employment tribunal time limits was introduced earlier this year by Labour in their ‘Plan to Make Work Pay’. 

Since then, we’ve seen the publication of the Employment Rights Bill.  Whilst the Bill itself was silent on reforms to tribunal limits, the accompanying ‘Next Steps’ document stated, “measures to extend the time limit for bringing claims to Employment Tribunals will also be added via amendment”.

These proposals have now been confirmed in a set of amendments to the Bill published by the government on 26 November 2024. The government intends to amend the Bill so that employees will have six months to bring a claim. This will apply to all types of claims, including discrimination claims and unfair dismissal claims.

What will this change mean for employers in practice?

Though there is a chance that the change could be welcomed in some cases, for example where a grievance or certain negotiations with an employee do not have enough time to conclude before a claim has to be submitted, ultimately, like other changes proposed by the Bill, extending the time limits for bringing a claim in the tribunal may lead to more uncertainty and an increase in claims overall.  This increase in claims will inevitably place additional strain on an already struggling tribunal system (unless extra funding / resources are made available), leading to further delays.

Though we are currently unsure exactly when the new timescales will apply, employers may wish to prepare by checking any data retention policies which are based on a three-month time limit.

You can read more about these issues and our thoughts on the likely impact on employers here.

For the latest on the Employment Rights Bill, see our dashboard here.