Data for employment tribunal and grievances
Freedom of information request reference no: 01.FOI.24.038617
I note you seek access to the following information:
- Between January 2019 and December 2023, how many grievances were brought for issues relating (directly or indirectly) to disability, medical conditions, or reasonable adjustments?
- Of those grievances (at 1 above), how many were from a) Police Officers and b) Police Staff?
- Of those grievances (at 1 above), what is the breakdown of protected characteristics of claimants, namely gender, race, ethnicity, and sexuality.
- Between January 2019 and December 2023, how many employment tribunal claims were lodged against your force (or an individual within your force)?
- Of those employment tribunals (at 4 above), how many were brought for issues relating (directly or indirectly) to disability, medical conditions, or reasonable adjustments?
- Of those employment tribunals (at 4 above), how many were from a) Police Officers and b) Police Staff?
- Of those disability related employment tribunals (at 4 above), what is the breakdown of protected characteristics of the claimants namely, gender, race, ethnicity, and sexuality.
Between January 2019 and December 2023, how many Employment Tribunal claims had the following outcomes: • Settled out of court. • As a result of Judicial Mediation • Judgement in favour of the claimant(s) • Judgement in favour of the force (or respondent if different) • Not proceeded with - What is the total amount your force has paid in legal fees (to include contracted out legal services, as well as ‘in house’) as a consequence of Employment Tribunal claims between January 2019 and December 2023 (break down in years).
- What is the total amount of monetary settlement your force has paid after Employment Tribunal claims between January 2019 and December 2023 (break down in years).
Decision
I have today decided to disclose some of the requested information. Some data has been withheld as it is exempt from disclosure and therefore this response serves as a Refusal Notice under Section 17 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the Act) by virtue of the following exemptions:
Section 40(2)(3A)(a) – Personal Information
Reason for decision
I note that in your seventh question you are seeking disclosure of those disability related employment tribunals (at 4 above), what is the breakdown of protected characteristics of the claimants namely, gender, race, ethnicity, and sexuality
I have made the decision to disclose the information you are seeking, however, in the case of certain ethnicities, please be advised that due to low figures, we have aggregated these into a total number. These ethnicities are marked in orange on the table provided.
If we were to disclose as you have requested, this would identify individuals concerned. This would release extremely sensitive personal information about individuals. For these reasons Section 40(2)(3A)(a) of the Act, which provides an exemption for personal information, have been applied to refuse disclosure in this case.
Section 40(2)(3)&(4) – Personal Information - There are six data protection principles that are set out in Section 34 of the Data Protection Act 2018. The first principle requires that the disclosure of the requested personal data must be lawful and fair. Under the Act, the disclosure of personal data is considered to be lawful if:
a. There is a legitimate interest in the disclosure of that personal data.
b. The disclosure of the personal data is necessary to meet that legitimate interest.
c. The disclosure would not cause unwarranted harm to the data subject.
The requested information if disclosed could identify specific investigations and individuals concerned and release extremely sensitive information in relation to individuals concerned into the public domain.
Having considered the data, I have found, having considered the legitimate interest test, that any further break down would not be in accordance with the first principle of the DPA 2018. Although I understand there is an interest in the information you are seeking I believe this interest has been satisfied by the release of the disclosed information. I do not believe that providing any more details, when there is a reasonable risk that the additional information would identify individuals involved would add to any wider public debate that may be ongoing.
Furthermore, I do not think it would be fair to individuals concerned if information was disclosed that identified them under Freedom of Information.
Disclosure
I have today decided to disclose the rest of your requested information below. Please note we do not hold data on officer/staff sexuality.
Q1 - Between January 2019 and December 2023, how many grievances were brought for issues relating (directly or indirectly) to disability, medical conditions, or reasonable adjustments?
| 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | Grand Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 34 | 34 | 49 | 67 | 114 | 298 |
The number of grievances, enquires and allegations have risen and more colleagues than ever are using the grievance processes to address concerns. Following the Baroness Casey report there is an increased awareness of standards of behaviour and how to report concerns. Additionally, the MPS has fostered a supportive environment encouraging colleagues to report concerns leading to ongoing increases grievance submissions.
Q2 - Of those grievances (at 1 above), how many were from a) Police Officers and b) Police Staff?
| Staff Type | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | Grand Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Police Staff | 17 | 16 | 15 | 16 | 36 | 100 |
| Police Officer | 17 | 18 | 34 | 51 | 78 | 198 |
| Grand Total | 34 | 34 | 49 | 67 | 114 | 298 |
Q3 - Of those grievances (at 1 above), what is the breakdown of protected characteristics of claimants, namely gender, race, ethnicity, and sexuality.
| Gender | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | Grand Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Female | 21 | 19 | 29 | 28 | 60 | 157 |
| Male | 13 | 15 | 20 | 39 | 54 | 141 |
| Grand Total | 34 | 34 | 49 | 67 | 114 | 298 |
| Ethnicity | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | Grand Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asian | 7 | 8 | 4 | 11 | 16 | 46 |
| Black | 8 | 5 | 9 | 11 | 15 | 48 |
| Mixed | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 10 | 19 |
| Other | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 17 |
| Unknown | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| White | 16 | 17 | 32 | 35 | 63 | 163 |
| Grand Total | 34 | 34 | 49 | 67 | 114 | 298 |
Q4 - Between January 2019 and December 2023, how many employment tribunal claims were lodged against your force (or an individual within your force)?
Between the above dates, 428 Employment Tribunal claims were received.
Q5 - Of those employment tribunals (at 4 above), how many were brought for issues relating (directly or indirectly) to disability, medical conditions, or reasonable adjustments?
236 of the above claims related to Disability Discrimination.
Please note, we do not hold a breakdown of claims relating to medical conditions or reasonable adjustments, they all fall into the category of disability discrimination claims and are recorded as such.
Q6 - Of those employment tribunals (at 4 above), how many were from a) Police Officers and b) Police Staff?
Police officers – 311, Police Staff 102
Please note, additional claims were received from individuals who do not fall into either of the above categories.
Q7 - Of those disability related employment tribunals (at 4 above), what is the breakdown of protected characteristics of the claimants namely, gender, race, ethnicity, and sexuality.
Breakdown by Gender
Male - 126
Female - 110
| Ethnicity codes | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| H | White British | 117 | W | Mixed – White & Black African | 0 |
| S | White Irish | 7 | X | Mixed – White & Asian | 0 |
| T | White other | 6 | Y | Mixed – Any Other Mixed Background | 9 |
| R | Not Stated | 7 | P | Asian Other | 6 |
| I | Black Caribbean | 5 | 3 | Turkish and Turkish Cypriot Black Other Greek and Greek Cypriot Chinese Mixed - White & Black Caribbean Bangladeshi Aggregated Total 14 |
|
| J | Black African | 8 | K | ||
| U | Black British | 10 | Z | ||
| L | Indian | 30 | O | ||
| M | Pakistani | 8 | V | ||
| Q | Any other Group | 9 | N | ||
Q8 - Between January 2019 and December 2023, how many Employment Tribunal claims had the following outcomes: • Settled out of court. • As a result of Judicial Mediation • Judgement in favour of the claimant(s) • Judgement in favour of the force (or respondent if different) • Not proceeded with.
| Outcome | |
|---|---|
| Withdrawn by claimant | 122 |
| Struck Out by Tribunal | 26 |
| Settled | 14 |
| Judgement in favour of the claimant | 21 |
| Judgement in favour of the respondent | 39 |
Please note, the settlement negotiations may include Judicial Mediation, however the claim outcome is recorded as Settled.
Please note, the number of claims concluded between January 2019 and December 2023 does not correlate with the number of claims received during that period, as claims can take a number of months or sometimes years to conclude.
Q9 - What is the total amount your force has paid in legal fees (to include contracted out legal services, as well as ‘in house’) as a consequence of Employment Tribunal claims between January 2019 and December 2023 (break down in years).
It is not possible to provide a full picture of the fees incurred by the Directorate of Legal Services (DLS).
In-house Costs – DLS staff:
Information not held. A number of in-house staff may have completed work associated with the ETs, including say Admin Assistants. Fee earners (our lawyers and paralegals) are the only ones who record the time they spend working on each case. We can supply the total amount of time spent on cases by those fee earners, but it is not possible to provide the cost of that time without calculating it using the Met’s Ready Reckoner. Therefore the cost of Directorate of Legal Services fee earners is not information that is ‘held’, as we would have to create information to answer the question.
External Costs – Counsel, Professional Fees
It is possible for DLS to provide the costs of external counsel and professional fees. These are set out below;
| 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Counsel Fees | £335,051.11 | £452,488.16 | £408,783.92 | £411,405.63 | £448,274.54 |
| Professional Fees | £1,205,598.66 | £1,127,433.00 | £631,134.00 | £1,337,555.48 | £1,089,347.99 |
| Definitions | |
|---|---|
| External Costs | Counsel Costs paid to Counsel outside of the MPS |
| External Costs | Professional Fees Costs paid to External Solicitors outside of the MPS |
Q10 - What is the total amount of monetary settlement your force has paid after Employment Tribunal claims between January 2019 and December 2023 (break down in years).
| 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Settlement Amount | £324,850.00 | £453,763.29 | £453,085.50 | £306,801.74 | £352,570.66 |
| Definitions | |
|---|---|
| Settlement Amount |
Total paid out on Compensation
|