MoJ figures show a 55% rise in the employment tribunal backlog, with claims entering the system faster than they are resolved
The number of unresolved single employment tribunal claims rose sharply during 2025/26 as new claims continued to outpace the number of cases being resolved. Ministry of Justice figures show that 64,000 single claims remained open at the end of March 2026, a 55% increase on the previous year.
The tribunal received 50,000 single claims during the financial year, up 39% on 2024/25. Over the same period, disposals fell by 12% to 26,000, leaving almost twice as many claims entering the system as being resolved.
Pressure increased further in the final quarter of the year. Between January and March 2026, the tribunal received 15,000 single claims, 50% more than in the equivalent quarter in 2025.
Single claims accounted for around 67% of the 22,000 employment tribunal claims received during the quarter, with the remaining 7,200 forming multiple claims represented by 440 lead cases.
The tribunal disposed of 11,000 single and multiple claims between January and March, 22% fewer than in the same period a year earlier. The Ministry of Justice also reported that average employment tribunal case lengths increased between 2024/25 and 2025/26.
Multiple claims continued to account for the largest share of the tribunal’s outstanding caseload. At the end of March, there were 467,000 open multiple claims represented by 7,500 lead cases.
When single and multiple claims are combined, the tribunal’s total open caseload stood at 531,000. However, the Ministry of Justice cautioned that multiple-claim figures can fluctuate significantly because one dispute involving a large group of workers can have a substantial effect on the totals.
The department also said an ongoing data-quality review indicated that the reported open caseload for single and lead multiple cases could include an overcount of approximately 3%.
For single claims managed on the tribunal’s newer case-management system, unfair dismissal accounted for 23% of jurisdictional complaints during the January to March quarter. Disability discrimination represented 16%, while unauthorised deductions from wages accounted for 13%.
The figures show receipts continuing to exceed disposals, contributing to an increase in the tribunal’s open caseload. Overall, the statistics show employment tribunal receipts continuing to exceed disposals during 2025/26, resulting in further growth in the tribunal’s outstanding caseload despite ongoing case disposals.