Ensuring that a company and its managers know how to handle a grievance is a vital part of effective people management but do you know what a grievance actually is?
What is a grievance?
Numerous sources offer a range of definitions of the word grievance but there is a unanimity across the definitions in terms of three key words as summarised by Citizens Advice in that a grievance is when an employee has, “a concern, problem or complaint at work”. What those concerns, problems or complaints are can be a wide array of issues from problems related to pay all the way up to acts of discrimination.
What are the stages of handling a grievance?
If the nature of the grievance and the circumstances allow then it is always advisable to try and resolve grievances informally in the first instance. This can be as simple as a conversation between two colleagues who have had a disagreement to talk about the issues and reach a resolution that is mutually agreeable, or an employee raising a concern about their wages which is then checked and resolved by payroll. If the issue is more serious or it is felt that an informal approach won’t work then a formal route can be taken and should be in line with the ACAS code of practice. Employers are legally obliged to have a policy on handling grievances and that policy should be shared with staff. A grievance process is triggered when a formal grievance is received. The nature of the grievance should be clearly set out and the ACAS guidance is that matters should be raised, “without unreasonable delay”. A grievance hearing should then be arranged, at which the employee has a statutory right to be accompanied, so that the employer can fully understand the employee’s concerns, it might be that the employee has evidence or witnesses to bring to the meeting and the employer may then need to carry out further investigation. Once all appropriate matters have been considered the outcome of the grievance and any relevant actions should be set out in writing to the employee who raised the grievance. As with a disciplinary situation if the employee is dissatisfied with the decision then they have the right to appeal and that appeal should be heard wherever possible by someone else who has not previously been involved in the case.
What happens at the end of a grievance process?
The outcome of a grievance process is usually that the grievance is either upheld or not but what happens after a grievance process is really important to get right. Ideally, the aim should be to ensure that constructive methods are used to resolve the issues at the centre of the grievance so that they do not reoccur. Emotions often run high during grievances so make sure that staff are supported, it might be that further discussions take place, including mediation if appropriate, as a means of finding a way forward for all parties concerned. If this isn’t handled correctly then issues tend to continue to fester and result in further grievances, resignations and other employee relations issues. A grievance can also highlight concerns around an individual’s conduct and if that conduct is sufficiently serious, then it might also be the case that a disciplinary investigation follows on from a grievance in order to deal with the conduct concerns. Whatever happens ensure that everyone is treated respectfully and that issues are kept confidential.
Do you have any questions about todays blog, need help in becoming legally compliant with contracts/policies or can we support you in taking away any people pains to give you peace of mind?
If you answered yes to any of the above, just give us a call at CUBE HR on 01282 678321, or book in a FREE 30 Minute HR Health Check here FREE HR Health Check and we’ll happily give your business a full HR overview with our personal recommendations absolutely FREE!
Why not also check out our blog on a similar topic Grievances – Common Myths Busted!
We also have a YouTube channel with loads of handy videos outlining various HR related scenarios.
