Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of how long after claims are lodged employment tribunal hearings involving claimants in Scotland are scheduled for.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We continue to monitor waiting times in the Employment Tribunal through regular engagement with HM Courts and Tribunals Service and the judiciary. Published timeliness data is not currently available on a Scotland-only basis and does not measure the time between a claim being received and the hearing being listed, instead the time from claim receipt to disposal is recorded.
Workers should be able to enforce their employment rights in a timely manner, and we recognise that there remain significant challenges for the performance of the Employment Tribunal. We are continuing to monitor demand and are working with the judiciary and HM Courts and Tribunals Service to increase capacity and improve efficiency of the Employment Tribunal, including through judicial recruitment, deployment of Legal Officers, modern case-management systems and remote hearings where appropriate.
Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on employment tribunal waiting times affecting claimants in Scotland since January 2024.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We continue to monitor waiting times in the Employment Tribunal through regular engagement with HM Courts and Tribunals Service and the judiciary. Published timeliness data is not currently available on a Scotland-only basis and does not measure the time between a claim being received and the hearing being listed, instead the time from claim receipt to disposal is recorded.
Workers should be able to enforce their employment rights in a timely manner, and we recognise that there remain significant challenges for the performance of the Employment Tribunal. We are continuing to monitor demand and are working with the judiciary and HM Courts and Tribunals Service to increase capacity and improve efficiency of the Employment Tribunal, including through judicial recruitment, deployment of Legal Officers, modern case-management systems and remote hearings where appropriate.
Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many employment tribunal claims involving claimants in Scotland have been outstanding for more than (a) one year, (b) two years, (c) three years and (d) four years.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The number of employment tribunal claims involving claimants in Scotland that have been outstanding for more than (a) one year, (b) two years, (c) three years and (d) four years can be found in the below table.
Table 1. Employment Tribunal (amalgamated data) - Claims involving claimants in Scotland 1 that have been in the open caseload for more than (a) one year, (b) two years, (c) three years and (d) four years, as of 31 March 2026 2
Case Type | Volume of claims in the open caseload for more than one year as of 31 March 2026 | Volume of claims in the open caseload for more than two years as of 31 March 2026 | Volume of claims in the open caseload for more than three years as of 31 March 2026 | Volume of claims in the open caseload for more than four years as of 31 March 2026 |
Single and Lead Multiple Claims | 1,205 | 690 | 500 | 427 |
Source: SDP ET AMALGAMATED DATABASE
Extraction Date: 03-JUL-2026
1 Claims managed within the Scotland region but do not separately record whether an individual claimant is resident in Scotland.
2 Latest data available, in line with published statistics.
This data is management Information and subject to change. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale case management system and is the best data that is available.
Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions Ministers in her Department have had regarding the capacity of the employment tribunal system to deal with cases arising in Scotland.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Ministers and officials engage regularly with HM Courts and Tribunals Service and judiciary regarding the capacity and performance of the ET in Scotland. We recognise receipts are rising and have recently recruited in Scotland two new salaried judges and five new fee paid judges.
Across the ET system we are maximising sitting days and expanding the use of remote hearings through a ‘virtual region’ to allow 2,000 sitting days annually without geographic limits. The Fair Work Agency (FWA) is part of wider work to strengthen enforcement of employment rights, the FWA now enforces rights including the National Minimum Wage and, in time, it will enforce additional rights including holiday pay.
The Department for Business & Trade (DBT) and the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) have set up the Dispute Resolution System Taskforce, including a wide range of stakeholder representatives, to support us in considering reforms in the employment dispute system so it works better for both workers and businesses.
Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the extent to which delays in the employment tribunal system may deter workers from pursuing legitimate employment claims.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We recognise the significant pressures facing the Employment Tribunal and are taking action to increase capacity and reduce waiting times. The Government has not made a specific assessment of the extent to which delays in the Employment Tribunal system deter workers from pursuing legitimate employment claims. However, we recognise the importance of individuals being able to enforce their employment rights in a timely manner. As of April 2026, the average time from claim receipt to disposal was 59.6 weeks. Most regions are currently listing one and two-day hearings in 2026 although waiting times for longer hearings vary across the country, with some regions listing into 2028 and 2029.
The Employment Tribunal has been funded for 32,590 sitting days in 2026/27, including through a virtual region that enables remote hearings to be listed without geographical restriction. Following the most recent recruitment exercise, 34 salaried Employment Judges will begin sitting from September 2026, and recruitment is underway for a further 55 salaried Employment Judges who will add capacity from summer 2027.
Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many employment tribunal cases involving claimants in Scotland are currently listed for a final hearing more than 24 months after proceedings were lodged.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The specific information requested is not held by HM Courts & Tribunals Service. Data on open caseload for the Employment Tribunals is published in Tribunals Statistics Quarterly and data to March 2026 can be found in table S_4 of the main tables here: Tribunals statistics quarterly: January to March 2026 - GOV.UK. Figures for ET single claims, ET lead multiples and ET multiple claims are in columns H, I and J respectively.
Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the longest recorded waiting time is between claim lodgement and final hearing for an employment tribunal case involving a claimant in Scotland.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
HMCTS does not hold information on the longest recorded waiting time between claim lodgement and final hearing for an employment tribunal case involving a claimant in Scotland.
Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of employment tribunal claims involving claimants in Scotland were concluded within (a) six months, (b) one year, (c) two years and (d) three years in the latest period for which data are available.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
HMCTS does not hold information on the proportion of employment tribunal claims involving claimants in Scotland were concluded within (a) six months, (b) one year, (c) two years and (d) three years in the latest period for which data are available.
Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment her Department has made of whether employment tribunal delays disproportionately affect (a) women, (b) disabled people, (c) ethnic minority workers and (d) other groups protected under the Equality Act 2010.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Department is currently conducting an Access to Justice assessment of the Employment Tribunal which will include exploration of whether there are disproportionate waiting times experienced by those with protected characteristics. We expect to publish this by the end of March 2027.
We remain committed to ensuring the Employment Tribunal is fair, lawful, and accessible to all users. We recognise the significant pressure facing Employment Tribunals and are taking action to increase capacity, improve efficiency and reduce waiting times, including through maximising sitting days and recruiting more employment judges.
From October this year, the time limit for bringing most Employment Tribunal claims will increase from three months to six months. This will provide more time for claimants to gather evidence, seek advice and prepare their claim helping to improve access to justice for all Employment Tribunal users, including those protected under the Equality Act 2010.
Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of employment tribunal waiting times on workers pursuing claims relating to (a) unfair dismissal, (b) discrimination and (c) unlawful deduction from wages.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Workers should be able to enforce their employment rights in a timely manner. As of April 2026, the average time from claim receipt to disposal was 59.6 weeks. Most one- and two-day hearings are currently being listed in 2026, although waiting times for longer hearings vary geographically.
We recognise the significant pressures facing Employment Tribunals and are taking action to increase capacity and reduce waiting times. This includes funding 32,590 sitting days in 2026/27, recruiting additional Employment Judges and operating a virtual region which enables 2,000 sitting days a year to be heard without geographical restriction.