Hiring glossary
What is a grievance at work?
A grievance is a concern, problem or complaint that an employee raises with their employer about their work, working conditions or how they are treated, usually through a written grievance procedure.
The definition above follows the Acas Code of Practice, which UK employment tribunals take into account. Common grievances cover pay, workload, changes to terms, working relationships, bullying, harassment and discrimination. Most are best settled informally with the line manager, and a good policy says so, but the formal route has to be there for when that fails or is not appropriate.
The Acas Code sets out the formal steps for the UK. The employee puts the grievance in writing to a manager who is not the subject of it. The employer holds a meeting without unreasonable delay, where the employee can explain the complaint and how they think it should be resolved, and the employee has a statutory right to be accompanied by a colleague or trade union representative where the grievance is about a duty the employer owes them. The employer decides what action to take, confirms it in writing and explains the right of appeal. An appeal goes to a manager not previously involved where possible. Tribunals can adjust awards by up to 25% where either side unreasonably fails to follow the Code.
Other countries build grievance handling into law differently. In India, the Industrial Relations Code 2020 requires every industrial establishment with 20 or more workers to have one or more Grievance Redressal Committees, with equal employer and worker members and adequate representation of women, and a worker can apply to the committee within a year of the issue arising. In the US and Australia, grievance procedures are most often set by collective agreements, awards or company policy.
Whatever the jurisdiction, write the procedure down, give timescales for each step, keep notes of every meeting and decision, and protect the employee from retaliation for raising the complaint. This is general information, not legal advice.
Also called: grievance procedure, grievance policy, workplace complaint.
Example
An analyst emails HR a written grievance saying his manager has twice cancelled his agreed flexible working days without reason. HR invites him to a meeting within a week, he brings a colleague, the investigating manager speaks to the line manager and the outcome letter restores the arrangement and explains how to appeal.
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