Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.
The Survey of Employment Tribunal Applications (SETA98) research project was commissioned by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) and the Employment Tribunal Service (ETS). The study was conducted by the National Centre for Social Research. The aims of the survey were to bring up to date the findings of a previous survey, the 'Survey of Industrial Tribunal Applications', conducted in 1992 (the specific data for this survey is unavailable) on the characteristics of the parties involved in tribunal cases, and to collect more detailed information on what were considered to be the principal factors that determined the outcome and durations of employment tribunal cases. These factors included: the reason for the dispute; the use of workplace disciplinary and grievance procedures; sources of advice and representation; the role of ACAS; the direct costs incurred by parties; and the consequences of the case. SETA98 included five of the major employment tribunal jurisdictions, based on the main jurisdiction identified in the ETS records of the case. These five jurisdictions were as follows: Unfair dismissal; Breach of contract; Wages Act; Discrimination on the grounds of sex and race; Redundancy payments. The sample for the survey was drawn from ETS records of applications, and either the applicant or employer was selected for interview. Interviews were conducted using Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI). Depending upon the main jurisdiction in their case respondents completed either a Core or a longer Depth variant of the questionnaires. As a supplement to SETA98, a survey of professional advisors/representatives who had represented respondents during the tribunals covered in SETA98 was also undertaken, thereby providing an opportunity to consider first-hand the views of practitioners. This study is known as the Survey of Representatives, 1998 (SOR98) and is also held at the UK Data Archive, under SN:5006. Three earlier studies regarding employment tribunals have also been conducted on behalf of the Department of Trade and Industry: in 1973 (results published 1975), 1978 and 1987. UKDA currently holds the 1973 study under SN: 1518 (Survey of Industrial Tribunals, 1973) and the 1978 study under SN: 1871 (Experience of Industrial Tribunals/Dismissal, 1978), but not the 1987 study. These earlier studies are mentioned in the documentation for SETA98.
Main Topics:
The dataset combines all responses for SETA98. It includes data from both the Depth and Core variants of the Applicant and Employer surveys. There are 1408 productive interviews with applicants and 1300 interviews with employers. The supporting documentation includes a guide to the Combined Questionnaire structure (based on the Applicant Depth variant). The following topics were covered in the survey: characteristics of all parties involved in the case; the case and the application; advice and representation arbitration services (ACAS) outcomes interlocutory events full tribunal hearing appeals and reviews costs and benefits aftermath of the case and respondents' feelings as to the outcome. Unfortunately several problems with the CATI (Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing) script programming meant that the data quality standards fall short of what might be hoped for such in such an important study. The very degree of complexity involved in the proposed survey design and methodology, combined with numerous failures in the routing systems, has resulted in the collection of data in certain cases that are inappropriate and also the non-collection of data in cases where it would be appropriate. Users are advised to read the supporting documentation very carefully before using these data.
Disproportionate random sample by jurisdiction and regional office (London and unfair dismissal cas
Telephone interview
Transcription of existing materials
in addition to the interviews conducted, data were gathered from the ETS National Register of Appli
