New ‘Vento’ Bands
A judicial consultation took place on 20 July 2017 between the Presidents of the Employment Tribunal in England and Wales and in Scotland in advance of proposed Presidential Guidance.
The consultation was in relation to proposed changes to Employment Tribunal awards for injury to feelings and psychiatric injury following the decision of the Court of Appeal in De Souza v Vinci Construction (UK) Ltd [2017] EWCA Civ 879.
In De Souza v Vinci Construction (UK) Ltd, the Court of Appeal has held that the 10% uplift in damages established by the Court of Appeal in Simmons v Castle 2012 EWCA Civ 1039 applies to compensation awarded by an employment tribunal for discrimination.
Although the justification for the uplift does not apply in the employment tribunal, S.124(6) of the Equality Act 2010 requires uniformity in awards for discrimination compensation between the tribunal and the county court.
Most responses were in support of the proposed uplift to the Vento bands which will apply to any claims issued on or after 11 September 2017. These are:
- Lower band (less serious cases): £800 to £8,400
- Middle band: £8,400 to £25,200
- Upper band (the most serious cases): £25,200 to £42,000
- Exceptional cases: over £42,000
These bands are formally set out in helpful Presidential Guidance which was issued on 5 September 2017: https://www.judiciary.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/vento-bands-presidential-guidance-20170905.pdf
The full judicial consultation and the rationale for the response can be found here:-
Consultation https://www.judiciary.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/vento-bands-consultation.pdf
Response https://www.judiciary.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/vento-consultation-response-20170904.pdf