Recent reporting by the Financial Times has highlighted some striking examples. In one case, a claimant reportedly filed a grievance running to a thousand pages with a user guide attached to help the reader navigate it. That example may be extreme, but it captures a wider issue – AI can produce large volumes of material quickly, confidently and in a style that appears legalistic, even where the content is unfocused and inaccurate.
Recent research suggests that around 60% of UK businesses have encountered employee grievances they believe were generated using AI and one in three HR teams have seen AI used in preparing Employment Tribunal claims.
Our own experience at BTO supports the fact that AI is increasingly used by Claimants in tribunal litigation, increasing complexity, time and cost.
The rise of AI-assisted grievances and claims should not be viewed in purely negative terms. For some employees, AI may help them articulate concerns they would otherwise struggle to raise. This may be particularly important for individuals who cannot afford legal advice, those for whom English is not their first language, neurodiverse employees, or those who find formal workplace processes difficult to navigate.
At the same time, employers are facing a practical challenge. AI-generated material can be lengthy, repetitive and legally complex on its face. For employment lawyers and tribunals already dealing with heavy workloads, AI-generated material risks adding further pressure to an already stretched system. Claims may include allegations that are not clearly explained, references to law that do not apply, or arguments that have little prospects of success.
There are clear risks that employers need to be alert to. AI tools are designed to provide confident answers and can often tell users what they want to hear. As a result, employees may be given overly optimistic assessments of their legal position or unrealistic views about compensation and the likelihood of success at tribunal.
A grievance is a critical stage in the employment relationship. It provides an opportunity for concerns to be raised, understood, and resolved before they escalate further. If concerns are not addressed appropriately, or if the grievance process is not handled fairly and thoroughly, matters can progress to formal disputes, including employment tribunal hearings. For this reason, every grievance should be approached with care, impartiality, and a focus on understanding the underlying issues rather than making assumptions based on the language or style of the document.
Managers should avoid placing undue weight on whether a grievance appears to have been drafted using AI. Instead, the emphasis should remain on the substance of the concerns, the evidence available and the employee’s experience. Early intervention remains one of the most effective ways to prevent workplace issues from escalating.
By responding promptly, conducting fair and proportionate investigations and maintaining open communication throughout the process, organisations can reduce the risk of escalation, preserve working relationships, and minimise the likelihood of external legal proceedings.
By lowering the barrier to entry, AI tools enable party litigants to draft lengthy, highly complex and sometimes inaccurate submissions. This can clog the system and slow down hearings. This is happening against a backdrop of significant pressure on the employment tribunal system.
Recent commentary on tribunal statistics points to a sharp increase in single claims filed at the employment tribunal, which are up 39% year on year. There is also a growing backlog of open cases, which has jumped 55% in a single year to around 64,000. That wider pressure makes early, effective handling of workplace disputes even more important.
These pressures are expected to increase further with the implementation of the Employment Rights Act 2025. In particular, from 1 January 2027, the qualifying period for ordinary unfair dismissal is expected to be reduced from two years to six months, and the cap on compensatory awards for unfair dismissal will be removed (perhaps making settlement of claims more difficult to achieve). Employers should therefore prepare for the possibility of more claims and greater exposure.
Employers should assume that AI‑assisted complaints are now part of the landscape and adapt their approach accordingly.
AI is unlikely to disappear from workplace disputes. Employees will continue to use it to draft grievances, prepare correspondence and understand their rights. For employers, the answer is not to ignore AI-assisted complaints or to treat them with suspicion. The answer is to manage them carefully, fairly and strategically from the outset.
Where complex issues arise, employers should seek professional advice at an early stage. BTO Solicitors regularly advise employers on grievances and complex employment tribunal claims.
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