Grievance Handling

Whilst we do our best to choose the ideal employees for the job, there is no guarantee that they are going to get along 100% of the time. Grievances rear their head every now and then – whether it’s between co-workers or an employee and a manager, they all need to be taken seriously and dealt with appropriately.

If poorly handled or ignored, even the smallest grievance can escalate, which may result in the employer having to defend itself in court.

There are some basic ground rules when it comes to handling a grievance. It must be addressed with complete transparency and objectivity. Once the grievance has been made, immediate attention and action is required to ensure the complainant that the issue is being taken seriously.

Action to be taken will usually result in an investigation by an impartial party (HR/Management) and/or mediation between those involved.

Mediation is only ever going to be a successful option if those involved agree and accept the grievance being brought forward and are open to working towards a resolution, but are unable to do it alone.

When undertaking an investigation, it is imperative that it is conducted without any preconceptions by those performing the investigation. It should be conducted as quickly as possible with minimal disruption to those involved. Depending on the issue, an investigation may involve interviews, video footage, record keeping and any historical data that may be relevant. It has to be clear that no firm decision is reached until the investigation has been completed and all parties have had an opportunity to put their side of the story forward.

Quite often an investigation will result in one person’s word against another, and unlike criminal law, there does not have to be definitive and irrefutable proof when deciding on a workplace grievance. A decision can be made on the balance of probabilities; in that it is more probable than not that the incident occurred based on the evidence at hand, taking into account any extenuating circumstances. For example, if an investigation reveals impartial credible witness accounts supporting the allegations of one employee, you would be likely to accept those allegations as sustained.

Once a decision has been reached, all parties are to be informed of this and any actions to be taken, if any, in respect to those involved. It is also very important that records are maintained for all investigations, meetings and results of the grievance procedure in the event of legal action or a repeat of the issue in the future. Furthermore a key issue is maintaining confidentiality, ensuring that those who are involved (either directly or as witnesses) and/or require knowledge of the grievance are also aware of the need to ensure confidentiality.

Whilst it is generally human nature to avoid conflict as much as possible, and it’s easier to just let things slide, employers do not have this luxury when it comes to workplace grievances.

Dan Evans – HR Manager