Common mistakes when handling grievances can damage morale, trust, and even lead to legal consequences. Hopefully grievances are not a regular occurrence in your organisation, but would you know how to handle one if it landed on your desk? Here are 5 common mistakes that are often made — and how to avoid them:
Not Taking Grievances Seriously
You may feel that your employee is just having a rant, overreacting to something or that their complaint is not justified. And you are entitled to your opinion, but the employee also has the right to be heard and brushing off complaints will make your employees feel ignored and undervalued. It will also likely add fuel to their concern, and you will end up with further, possible more complex, grievances.
You should treat all grievances with respect and acknowledge the concern and if cannot be resolved informally, commit to addressing it in line with the ACAS code of conduct. This involves holding a formal meeting, where the employee has the right to be accompanied and objectively investigating the matter and providing an outcome.
You should have a Grievance policy that outlines your procedure and compliance with the ACAS code.
Delaying the Grievance Response
It can feel like a kick in the stomach getting a grievance in from an employee, knowing that potentially something has gone wrong in your business to make an employee unhappy. The thought of going through the process to investigate it and resolve it might fill you with dread but that is no reason to leave it. Letting grievances sit unresolved for a long time will build frustration and mistrust with the employee and gives the impression the company doesn’t care.
You should acknowledge receipt of the grievance in a timely manner (ideally 24-48 hour’s) and the arrange the initial hearing within a reasonable timeframe, keeping the employee updated.
You should continue to act in a timely manner throughout the process, you will need to investigate and feedback to the employee. Don’t unreasonably drag this out. How long it takes will depend on the case, but if there is complex investigations you need to do, or you are reliant on others then be proactive with it and keep the employee updated.
Lack of Objectivity
It can be hard, particularly in small organisations to take sides to quickly or let personal feelings bias the investigation. This damages the credibility of the process and can lead to an unfair outcome and legal risks if proven.
Anyone that is implicated in the complaint should not be involved in the grievance process other than if their witness statement or version of events is required. If you feel you are too close to those implicated that you cannot keep personal bias at bay then you need to either pass the case to a different manager, director or outsource it to an external HR consultant. This ensure that during the process all parties get a fair opportunity, and you stick to the facts.
Poor Grievance Documentation
The frustrating bit – you do all the process correct and objectively, but your paperwork lets you down! All meetings should have a formal invite letter, there should be minutes taken of the meeting and the outcome should be given in writing, documenting the right to appeal.
Not doing this makes follow up and accountability difficult and leaves the company exposed if legal issues arise.
Keep clear records of:
- The grievance raised
- Who was involved
- Actions taken
- Dates and communications
Failing to Address the Grievance Root Causes
When investigating make sure you look for the underlying problem, what caused the complaint in the first place. For example, someone might complain that they are being asked to work long hours without pay – you may fix this by agreeing to pay them but was that really the complaint – or was it that they are working long hours. How can you address this issue? Why are they working long hours?
Not addressing this will lead to repeat complaints and low morale and sends the message out the organisation avoids real change.
Use grievances as learning opportunities. Ask:
- Is this a symptom of a wider issue (e.g. toxic culture, poor leadership)?
- What policy, training, or communication needs to change?
There is no fail-safe way to stop grievances; even the best company in the world with all the benefits and ideal working conditions will have times where employees feel aggrieved and raise their concerns. The important thing to avoid the common mistakes with handling grievances, is to address them in a timely manner, objectively and keep a record. If you would like SliceHR to support your business with employee matters please get in touch.