Most workplace disputes in Great Britain do not start in an employment tribunal. They start with a grievance, an employee’s formal complaint that their employer has failed in some duty owed to them, and how that grievance is handled is measured against a specific benchmark: the Acas Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures. The Code applies in England, Scotland and Wales; Northern Ireland has its own, separate disciplinary and grievance framework.
What the Code actually is
The Acas Code sets out what Acas describes as the minimum an employer should follow when handling a disciplinary or grievance issue at work. It is not itself an Act of Parliament, and failing to follow it is not, on its own, an unlawful act that can be sued for directly. Its force comes from a different route: an employment tribunal is required to take the Code into account when it decides whether an employer, or an employee, has acted reasonably.
Raising a grievance formally
Under the Code, an employee who wants to raise a formal grievance should set it out in writing, addressed to a manager who is not the subject of the complaint, clearly stating the nature of the grievance. Many employers deal with concerns informally first, but once a grievance is raised formally the Code expects the employer to hold a meeting without unreasonable delay so the employee can explain the complaint and what outcome they are looking for. The employer may need to adjourn the meeting to investigate points raised before reaching a decision.
The right to be accompanied
Where the grievance concerns a duty the employer owes the worker, the worker has the right to be accompanied at the meeting. The Code identifies who that companion can be: a fellow worker, a trade union representative, or an official employed by a trade union (or a lay union official certified by their union as competent, if not employed by it). If the chosen companion is not available at the time proposed for the meeting, the employer must postpone it to a time proposed by the worker, provided that new time is reasonable and falls within five working days of the date originally proposed.
Reaching an outcome and the right to appeal
After the meeting, the employer should tell the employee what decision has been taken and, where appropriate, what action it intends to take to resolve the grievance. If the employee is not satisfied with how the matter has been dealt with, the Code expects them to be given the right to appeal, and to say so in writing without unreasonable delay. As far as is reasonably practicable, the appeal should be dealt with impartially and, wherever possible, by a manager who has not previously been involved in the case. The right to be accompanied applies to the appeal meeting as well.
What happens if the Code is ignored: the tribunal uplift
The Code’s real teeth sit in section 207A of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992. Where a claim covered by the Code succeeds at an employment tribunal, and the tribunal finds that the employer unreasonably failed to follow the Code, it can increase any compensation awarded by up to 25%. The same mechanism cuts the other way: if it is the employee who unreasonably failed to follow the Code, for example by skipping the formal grievance stage entirely, the tribunal can reduce the award by up to 25% instead. The adjustment does not apply to every type of claim, and it does not apply to grievances about redundancy selection or the non-renewal of a fixed-term contract, which the Code does not cover, but it is a real and quantifiable financial consequence for both sides of getting the process wrong.
Why employers and employees both follow it closely
Because the uplift is calculated as a percentage of whatever award the tribunal makes, its financial impact scales with the size of the claim: on a large compensatory award for unfair dismissal, a 25% swing can be a substantial sum either way. That incentive is why both employers’ HR teams and employees raising a grievance tend to follow the Code’s structure closely, even though the document itself is guidance rather than law. A tribunal claim form also generally cannot proceed until Acas early conciliation has been attempted, a separate but related step in the same overall system for resolving workplace disputes before they reach a full hearing.
FAQs
Do I have to raise my grievance in writing?
The Code expects a formal grievance to be set out in writing and sent to a manager who is not the subject of the complaint, so that the nature of the complaint is clear from the outset.
Can I bring a solicitor to a grievance meeting?
No. The Code’s right to be accompanied is limited to a fellow worker or a trade union representative or official; it does not extend to a lawyer.
What happens if my employer refuses to let me appeal?
Refusing a reasonable appeal request is the kind of failure a tribunal can treat as an unreasonable breach of the Code, which is relevant to the up-to-25% uplift if a related claim later succeeds.
Does the Code apply if I work in Northern Ireland?
No. The Acas Code covers England, Scotland and Wales; Northern Ireland has a separate statutory disciplinary and grievance framework.
The bottom line
The Acas Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures is guidance, not legislation, but employment tribunals in Great Britain are required to consider it and can move a compensation award by up to 25% in either direction depending on who unreasonably ignored it. A written grievance, a prompt meeting, the right to be accompanied by a colleague or union representative, and a genuine right of appeal are the minimum structure the Code expects. This is general information, not legal advice on an individual grievance; anyone facing a live workplace dispute should get advice on their specific circumstances.