Grievance

A grievance is a complaint about something at work usually in writing, addressed to your manager. If the manager is the subject of the complaint, the Grievance can be sent to someone more senior or another manager at their level. It is usually best to deal with any issues informally wherever possible; a simple chat with your manager can help to avoid causing undue stress or escalation. However, there will be times where the complaint is of a more serious nature and cannot be dealt with informally or the informal approach has not resolved the issues.

The difficulty with making any sort of complaint in the workplace is that at times, it could alienate you from management and colleagues. That is when you will need someone in your corner, advising you, to try to get the right outcome. It is equally important to have access to this support when you are writing your grievance, responding to it, presenting it at the grievance meeting, reviewing the notes and considering an appeal. Having gone through a difficult time to get to the stage of being ready to raise a grievance, going through the process on your own can be difficult. Especially as your company is likely to have various managers and HR Advisors ready to deal with your case.

Sometimes it’s about the right person saying the right thing. It may be difficult for you to make a difficult point to the HR person, whose job is to protect the company, not you. However, your Trade Union Representative will make the points on your behalf clearly and ensure it is minuted or in writing to ensure there is a paper trail.

Tips for writing and dealing with a Grievance:

Keep a written record/diary of events, with the date, time, description of the incident, name of witnesses, their reactions at the time, how the actions of a party made you feel.

Write your Grievance with headings to include what happened, when it happened and how it made you feel.

Make it succinct and easy to follow in chronological order.

Reference evidence you may have and cite any witnesses.

Set out what outcome you desire. If it is a pay issue for example, being paid the amount owed could be your solution. If it is about being bullied, you may want to be protected from the alleged bully, for them to be disciplined or moved from the team.

Supporting evidence can be provided at the Hearing rather than sending it all at once.

Ensure you are the first person to be interviewed once the Grievance has been raised so that you can ensure your points are well made.

Check the minutes of the Grievance Hearing to ensure they accurately reflect what was discussed.