GSD slams ‘completely unacceptable’ delays at Employment Tribunal

There are currently 59 cases awaiting the appointment of a chairman in the Employment Tribunal, the GSD said on Thursday, adding some people had been waiting more than two years and describing the delays as “completely unacceptable”.

The GSD said many cases were “paralysed” at the tribunal and this was affecting the rights of due process of sacked employees.

The part was reacting after the Gibraltar Government gave details of the backlog of cases at the Employment Tribunal, including nine cases going back to 2020, 27 cases from 2021 and 23 cases filed this year.

“The unacceptable delays in appointing a chairperson in order to deal with applications lodged at the Employment Tribunal is a total failure in our Justice system and equally affects both employers and employees,” said Edwin Reyes, the GSD’s spokesman for employment.

“People’s rights are being affected by these delays.”

“The huge delays in appointing Tribunal Chairpersons should not be tolerated any more.”

“There is no justifiable reason why some persons have been waiting for over two years for their applications to proceed since they were filed.”

The GSD said it remained committed to its 2019 election manifesto pledge whereby “a Courts and Tribunals Service will be established incorporating the Current Court Service and absorbing the Employment Tribunal and other Tribunals. This will ensure streamlined processes and easier administration for cases.”