Businesses and employees under increasing strain, says Acas

Posted 22/07/2009

Businesses and individuals are finding themselves under increasing amounts of strain because of the recession, according to Acas.

The employment relations service said that in the last year, the number of employment tribunal cases has gone up significantly, while more people are seeking advice on redundancy.

A 22 per cent increase in the number of unfair dismissal conciliation cases was also reported – a development that Acas attributed to the effects of the economic downturn.

Ed Sweeney, chairman of the group, commented: “The figures in this report underline the strain that businesses and individuals have had to face in the last year.”

However, the organisation added that it believes its new guidelines on dispute resolution and workplace conflict could have a positive impact over the next 12 months.

Meanwhile, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research has said the UK’s economic recovery could take up to five years.

The organisation stated that gross domestic product is unlikely to return to the levels recorded in early 2008 until about March 2014.