50 per cent more employment tribunals last year

A union boss says he suspects austerity and cutbacks at companies is behind a rise in the workload of the Manx Industrial Relations Service.

The body is due to put its annual report to Tynwald next week which says it saw almost 10,000 cases last year - a rise of almost 11 per cent compared to 2015.

Eric Holmes, of Unite, says there was a 50 per cent rise in the number of employment tribunal claims in the last 12 months.

He says it's a sign of hard times for businesses and their workers: