How your grievance should be handled by your employer

Your employer may require you to discuss your workplace grievance issue informally with your manager. Whether this is a feasible option will depend on a number of factors including what your grievance is about and if you are happy for an informal approach to be followed.

The informal grievance approach has its merits and may well resolve your concerns quickly with less fuss. It could involve one or two meetings with your line manager or it could involve a series of meetings involving any relevant people.

Whatever form it takes your employer should ensure you receive feedback about the actions being taken to resolve your concerns.

If the informal approach is unsuccessful, or if your workplace complaint is just too serious to be dealt with informally, your employer will need to follow a formal grievance procedure. If you have not already done so, this will require you to set out your grievance complaint in writing.

Your employer’s grievance procedure should say who your grievance letter should go to. If your grievance complaint is about that person, the procedure should tell you who should receive send it instead – most likely another manager. If it doesn’t check with your employer’s HR department/manager or just send your grievance letter to another manager or director.

After your employer receives your grievance it should arrange a grievance meeting or hearing with you. At this meeting you should have the opportunity to explain your grievance and how you want it to be resolved.

From this meeting, if your grievance has not been quickly resolved, your employer will have to decide how best to proceed.

Sometimes your employer will want to investigate your grievance complaint before they meet with you. Sometimes, after the first grievance meeting your employer will decide it has to carry out investigations. It will very much depend on the nature of your grievance.

As part of its investigation your employer may need to speak with witnesses and get statements to help them consider your grievance. Your employer may well need to review documents.

You should receive copies of any statements and documents considered by your employer as part of its investigation so that you can comment and respond to them if necessary.

Likewise your employer may ask to disclose any relevant documents and you should comply with such requests.

Once your employer has investigated your complaint it will normally hold a grievance meeting with you to discuss the merits of your grievance. The outcome of your grievance may be given at this meeting, or, more likely, afterwards confirmed to you in writing.

If you do not agree with your employer’s grievance decision you have the right to appeal against it. The grievance decision letter should set out your right to appeal, how you should appeal. It is important that you observe your employer’s time limit for sending in your appeal.

You employer’s grievance procedure should also explain your right to appeal.

If you appeal, your employer should hold an appeal meeting or hearing. It may also need to carry out further investigations.

Your employer should set out its appeal decision in writing.