Case of the week

A rarely used tactic for employees, interim relief can maintain their pay until the case is heard

Interim Relief - You’ve probably heard the term but not given it a great deal of thought.

This week’s case takes a brief look at interim relief and how it can help an employee maintain their pay following dismissal up to the date of the tribunal hearing which, as things are with the current employment tribunal backlog, may be some considerable time away.

As its name suggests the relief granted is interim, i.e. for a period of time. It’s only used in limited circumstances and has roots in trade union law. Applications for interim relief are few and far between, probably because individual claimants are unaware the right exists, and those that do know (who are generally represented by unions) have a fairly high hurdle to overcome to persuade a tribunal they should grant interim relief.

Furthermore, it is only in limited circumstances that interim relief can be used¹. As previously stated the relief was borne out of trade union law, so the circumstances tend to be associated with union rights, such as the carrying out of activities of a health and safety or trade union representative, blacklisting and whistleblowing.

In