A revised ACAS Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures came into force earlier this month. This followed the case of Total v GB Oils which held that the previous guidance from ACAS on the right to be accompanied at disciplinary and grievance hearings was wrong. The Employment Appeals Tribunal held that an employee has an absolute right to request his/her choice of trade union representative or workplace colleague to accompany him/her, provided the request to be accompanied is itself reasonable. The ‘reasonableness’ requirement does not apply to the precise choice of companion, provided they fall within the statutory categories. The previous ACAS Code of Practice had given employers the mistaken belief, that they could reasonably refuse the choice of companion an employee requests to accompany them to a hearing.
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Employment Associate Paul Burton says, “This revised Code of Practice from ACAS, clears up an issue that has caused some employers to treat employees unfairly in accordance with case law during disciplinary and grievance procedures. ACAS, unfortunately, simply got it wrong in the first place and the new version of Code has been long overdue.”
At Frettens, all of our solicitors offer a free initial meeting or chat on the phone to answer your questions. If this article raises issues for you or your business, please call us on 01202 499255 and Kate or Paul will be happy to discuss it with you.
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