The right to be accompanied at work meetings

If you are called to a disciplinary or grievance hearing, you have a legal right to bring someone with you. It is a short, strict right under section 10 of the Employment Relations Act 1999, and employers who deny it can face a tribunal award. Here is exactly what it covers.

Which meetings does it apply to?

The statutory right applies when you are invited to:

• A disciplinary hearing that could result in a formal warning or other action, including dismissal
• A grievance hearing about a duty your employer owes you
• An appeal against either outcome

It applies to workers as well as employees, from day one. It does not automatically cover informal chats, investigation meetings, sickness reviews or flexible working request meetings, though many policies allow a companion anyway and the Acas Code encourages it. Check your employer's policy and ask.

Who can you bring?

You can choose one companion who is:

• A fellow worker at your employer
• A trade union official employed by the union
• A workplace union representative certified by the union as trained to act as a companion

You do not have to be a union member, and your employer cannot pick your companion for you. You have no statutory right to bring a family member or a solicitor, though employers sometimes agree, especially as a reasonable adjustment for a disabled employee.

What your companion can do

By law, your employer must let your companion:

• Put your case and sum it up
• Respond on your behalf to any view expressed at the hearing
• Confer with you during the hearing

Your companion cannot answer questions put directly to you, and cannot stop the employer explaining its case. In practice they can also take notes, which is invaluable later.

A colleague who accompanies you must be given reasonable paid time off to do so, and cannot be punished for it.

Postponing the meeting

If your chosen companion cannot make the proposed time, you can propose another. Your employer must postpone to your time as long as it is reasonable and falls within five working days of the day they originally proposed.

Making the request

Ask in writing as soon as you get the invitation. Name your companion and their role. The request must be reasonable, which mainly means choosing someone from the permitted categories. Your employer cannot refuse simply because they dislike your choice.

What if your employer refuses?

You can bring a tribunal claim, but compensation is capped at two weeks' pay, currently capped at £751 a week, so up to £1,502. The bigger value is elsewhere:

• A refusal is a procedural failure that can help make a later dismissal unfair. See what is unfair dismissal.
• Unreasonable breach of the Acas Code can increase compensation in related claims by up to 25%
• Being punished for asking is unlawful detriment

Worked example

Tom is invited to a disciplinary at work hearing on Monday about alleged timekeeping. His union rep is away until Wednesday. Tom proposes Thursday, inside the five-working-day window. His employer refuses and goes ahead without him having a companion, then issues a final written warning. Tom can claim for the breach and appeal the warning, citing the refusal.

Investigation meetings and other grey areas

Investigation meetings are usually fact-finding only, so the statutory right does not apply. But if a so-called investigation meeting actually ends with a warning or decision, it has become a disciplinary hearing in substance, and the right should have applied. Note the date, who was there and what was decided.

The same goes for meetings about sickness absence or performance. If the meeting could lead to formal action, such as a warning under a capability procedure, ask for a companion in writing. If you are disabled and anxiety makes meetings difficult, ask for a companion of your choice as a reasonable adjustment. Our guide to being suspended from work covers what to expect before a hearing.

Preparing with your companion

Before the hearing, share the invitation letter, evidence and any notes. Agree who will say what, and ask your companion to record key statements word for word. If you are a zero hours worker worried about losing shifts for speaking up, read zero hours contract rights first.

Get advice

If you are facing a hearing that could end in dismissal, early advice can change the outcome. Our unfair dismissal solicitors can help you prepare or challenge the process. Tell us what is happening and we will match you with a vetted specialist within 24 hours, free.