What is the ACAS uplift, and why does it matter if you’re going to Tribunal or trying to settle with your employer in the UK?
So ACAS is a government funded organisation. Their whole purpose is to help resolve issues between employees and employers, so that they don’t go to Tribunal. Another thing that they do is publish a code of practice for disciplinary processes and grievance processes, and that’s what your employer should follow.
But you can’t take your employer to Tribunal just because they’ve violated the code of practice. There has to be some other reason on top of that, like unfair dismissal, discrimination, whistleblowing, etc.
So how do they enforce the code of practice? This is what they use the ACAS uplift and decrease for in Tribunal awards. The Tribunal can increase an award by up to 25% if an employer didn’t follow it, or decrease it by up to 25% if an employee didn’t follow it. So think about that when you’re settling, especially if the employer didn’t follow the grievance processes.
