Town hall ‘learns lessons’ of tribunals

TWENTY-SIX ‘lessons learned’ - including issues surrounding whistleblowing - have been considered by Cheshire East Council following recent employment tribunals.

The local authority has dealt with six employment tribunal claims in the past 12 months at a cost of £75,400 - and that figure is due to rise, with two of those claims still ongoing.

At a staffing committee meeting the findings were presented in a report, along with a five-point action plan to improve the way the council deals with staff concerns in future.

One of the four resolved claims was found in the council’s favour, two other tribunal cases were settled and another was withdrawn by the applicant.

The list of ‘lessons learned’ emphasised the need for HR procedures to be adhered to, for internal investigators of complaints to receive training and the requirement for legal input to be ‘consistently sought at an early stage’.

A five-point action plan was also produced, with each issue to be addressed by March.

Included in the plan was improved training for staff who conduct internal investigations and the need to ensure policy and procedure is ‘updated, clear and understood’.

The council also wants to establish an agreement for the availability of emails and documentation.