Employment Tribunal Compensation Explained
A plain English guide to how Employment Tribunal compensation works — what it includes, why awards vary so much and how to benchmark your own case.
CaseIntel compares your situation against more than 54,000 real Employment Tribunal decisions so you can see where comparable cases have landed.
How does Employment Tribunal compensation work?
There is no fixed tariff for Employment Tribunal compensation. Where a claim succeeds, the tribunal decides on a remedy based on the type of claim, the loss the claimant has suffered and a range of statutory rules. Two superficially similar cases can produce quite different awards.
For most unfair dismissal claims, compensation is made up of two main elements, with additional remedies available depending on the type of claim.
Basic Award
A statutory calculation broadly based on age, length of service and a capped weekly pay figure. Applies to unfair dismissal claims.
Compensatory Award
Reflects actual financial loss flowing from the dismissal — typically lost earnings, pension and benefits, subject to mitigation and any statutory cap.
Discrimination compensation
For discrimination claims, awards can also include injury to feelings and (in some cases) aggravated or personal injury damages. There is no statutory cap.
Other remedies
Depending on the claim, the tribunal may also order reinstatement, re-engagement, declarations or recommendations alongside compensation.
What affects compensation?
Two cases that look similar on paper can produce very different awards. That's because tribunals look at the specific financial impact of the dismissal on the individual — not a generic figure for the type of claim.
Salary, pension and benefits
Higher earners with valuable benefits generally have larger financial losses to compensate.
Length of service
Service feeds directly into the Basic Award and is often relevant to how long a claimant might be expected to remain out of work.
Financial loss to date
Tribunals look at actual losses (and likely future losses) caused by the dismissal, not a generic figure for the claim type.
Efforts to find new work
Claimants are expected to mitigate their loss. Failure to take reasonable steps can reduce the compensatory award.
Strength of evidence
Documents, timelines, contemporaneous notes and witness evidence often have a bigger impact on outcome than headline facts.
Type of claim
Different claim types (e.g. unfair dismissal, discrimination, whistleblowing) have different rules, caps and possible heads of loss.
Can two similar cases receive different awards?
Yes — and often do. Tribunal outcomes are driven by the evidence and arguments actually put before the tribunal, not just the headline facts.
- Different evidence available to each side
- Whether the claimant mitigated their loss
- Witness credibility on the day
- How the legal arguments were framed
- Judicial discretion on adjustments
- ACAS Code uplifts or reductions
- Contributory fault findings
- Statutory caps and tax treatment
Do most Employment Tribunal cases settle?
A significant share of Employment Tribunal disputes are resolved without a final hearing — through ACAS Early Conciliation, judicial mediation or direct negotiation between the parties.
That means understanding likely tribunal compensation isn't only relevant if you intend to go all the way to a hearing. It also shapes what a reasonable settlement looks like, which is why benchmarking matters before accepting or rejecting an offer.
Employment Tribunal Compensation Statistics
This section will shortly contain original CaseIntel analysis based on our database of more than 54,000 published Employment Tribunal decisions.
Average awards
Medians and typical ranges of tribunal compensation across our 54,000+ decision database.
Award distributions
How awards are distributed — from low-value claims to the long tail of larger awards.
Compensation by claim type
How compensation varies between unfair dismissal, discrimination, whistleblowing and other claim types.
Compensation by industry
How awards differ across sectors, from financial services to healthcare and the public sector.
Regional comparisons
How outcomes compare across England, Wales and Scotland's Employment Tribunal regions.
Settlement vs award
How tribunal awards compare to typical settlement values in equivalent cases.
Averages aren't enough — compare against cases like yours
A national "average award" tells you very little about your own case. What matters is how comparable cases — same claim type, similar role, similar sector — have actually been resolved.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there an Employment Tribunal compensation calculator?+
There is no single official calculator that gives a reliable figure for any given case. Some online tools estimate a Basic Award from age, service and weekly pay, but the Compensatory Award depends heavily on the individual's circumstances.
CaseIntel takes a different approach: rather than guessing a single number, we benchmark your case against comparable Employment Tribunal decisions so you can see the realistic range.
Is Employment Tribunal compensation capped?+
Some elements are. The Compensatory Award in unfair dismissal claims is generally subject to a statutory cap, which is reviewed periodically.
Other claims — including most discrimination claims — are not subject to that cap and can in principle produce higher awards where the loss justifies it.
What losses can be claimed?+
Typically: lost earnings (past and future), lost pension contributions, lost benefits, the cost of looking for new work and, in some claims, injury to feelings or other non-financial harm.
Claimants are expected to mitigate their loss by taking reasonable steps to find replacement work or income.
Do all successful claims receive compensation?+
Not always. A tribunal may find a dismissal procedurally unfair but conclude the employee would have been dismissed anyway, which can significantly reduce or eliminate the compensatory element.
Contributory fault and ACAS Code adjustments can also increase or reduce the final figure.
Can compensation be negotiated?+
Yes — where matters resolve by settlement rather than tribunal order, the figure is typically negotiated between the parties (often with ACAS involvement).
Benchmarking against comparable tribunal outcomes is a useful input into those negotiations.
How long does it take to receive compensation?+
Settlement payments are usually made shortly after a signed agreement, in line with its terms.
Tribunal-ordered compensation is usually payable within a set period after judgment, although enforcement can be needed if the employer fails to pay.
Is tribunal compensation taxable?+
Tax treatment depends on what each part of the award relates to. Some compensation for loss of employment may be tax-free up to certain limits, while elements such as notice pay are generally taxable.
A qualified adviser can confirm the position for your specific case.
See where your case sits before you decide
Benchmark a settlement offer against comparable tribunal awards, or check how often claims like yours succeed — in minutes.
This guide is for general information only and is not legal advice. Always consult a qualified employment solicitor before making legal decisions.