The Employment Act 2002 (Commencement No. 6 and Transitional Provision) Order 2004

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order brings into force the provisions of the Employment Act 2002 (2002 c. 22) (“the Act”) set out in Article 2. Those provisions listed in article 2(1) come into force on 9th July 2004 and those listed in article 2(2) come into force on 1st October 2004.

The provisions in section 22 and sections 24 to 28 of the Act amend the Employment Tribunals Act 1996 (1996 c. 17) in relation to the powers to make employment tribunal procedure regulations. Those amendments relate to costs and expenses, payments in respect of preparation time, conciliation, prescription of forms, determinations without a hearing, practice directions and pre-hearing reviews.

Section 23 of the Act amends the powers to make procedure rules for the Employment Appeal Tribunal in section 34 of the Employment Tribunals Act 1996 in relation to costs and expenses.

The provisions in sections 29, 31 and 32 of and Schedules 2 to 4 to the Act relate to the statutory dispute resolution procedures introduced by the Act.

Section 34 amends Part 10 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (1996 c. 18) (“the 1996 Act”) so that an employee is treated as unfairly dismissed if the dismissal and disciplinary statutory procedure applies but is not completed for a reason attributable to the employer.

Sections 35 and 36 of the Act amend section 3 of the 1996 Act (which deals with notes about disciplinary rules and procedures).

Section 37 of the Act inserts new sections, 7A and 7B, into the 1996 Act. These new sections deal with the use of alternative documents to give the employee a statement of his employment particulars.

Section 38 of and Schedule 5 to the Act deal with an employee’s claim that his employer has failed to give him a statement of particulars of employment.

Section 39 of the Act makes provision for the adjustment of awards of compensation under sections 31 and 38 by inserting a new section, 124A, into the 1996 Act.

Section 40 of the Act provides interpretation of Part 3 of the Act.

This Order also contains a transitional provision which has the effect that even where the employee’s grievance is about an action which continues after the 1st October 2004, sections 31 and 32 of and Schedule 2 to the Act do not have effect where the employee has already made a complaint to an employment tribunal about that action.