How to write a grievance letter – here’s what you need to know about all matters relating to grievances and grievance letters.
There are lots of different reasons why you might need to write a grievance letter.
Your grievance may related to any number of matters concerning your treatment at work, non payment of your salary or other problems relating to your terms of employment.
The First Step In A Grievance Procedure
The first step in a grievance procedure is usually to raise any issues you have with your employer informally before taking the step of writing a letter, though.
That usually means speaking to your line manager at work and explaining whatever your concern is and what you hope to happen to resolve it.
If you do not have a line manager you will need to raise the issue directly with your employer.
If the matter isn’t resolved and you wish to write a grievance letter, then the time for an employer to respond to a grievance letter and hold a grievance meeting is 4 weeks.
If you would like help with a grievance, please either call us now on 0845 1391399 or complete a Free Online Enquiry and we will connect you free of charge with a specialist employment solicitor.
How To Write A Grievance
Writing a grievance can be stressful, especially if you feel you’ve been treated unfairly by your employer and you’ve exhausted all other options.
Some of the reasons you might write a grievance include:
- If you’ve raised a grievance informally but feel it hasn’t had the desired effect.
- Issues you want to be dealt with informally and instead you want a formal process to determine the outcome<./li>
- Serious issues such as non-payment, whistleblowing, or harassment.
There is no official format to write a grievance letter in, although there is guidance available from unions, the Citizen’s Advice Bureau, and other bodies. Generally you’ll need to include:
- The date.
- The name of the person you’re writing to, whether that’s your line manager, HR manager, or employer.
- An outline of the grievance or complaint with as much information as possible.
- Details of any evidence you have relating to the grievance.
- The name of anyone you’d like to accompany you in a formal grievance meeting.
How Does The Grievance Process Work?
Once you raise a formal grievance, there’s a formal procedure that all employers should follow.
ACAS sets out a code of practice, although most employers should have their own grievance procedure in place. The procedure should follow the ACAS guidance as a minimum and be in writing AND easy for anyone to find.
That means that they should make it clear that they’ll process ALL grievances fairly and consistently and give everyone a chance to make their case before coming to a decision.
There must be an investigation to ensure that all information is brought forward, and employers can bring a relevant person to a grievance meeting – that might be a legal presentative, union representative, or someone from the Citizen’s Advice Bureau.
Any actions arising from the grievance meeting should be taken as soon as possible and the employee must be given the opportunity to appeal against the outcome.
From an employee perspective, you should always raise any grievance as soon as reasonably possible and act on any decisions as soon as you can.
The process should flow as follows:
- Raise an informal grievance with your employer to see if you can resolve the issue without any formal action.
- If you’re unable to resolve it, then write to your employer and inform them of your decision to raise a formal grievance, outlining your reasons for doing so.
- You’ll then have a grievance meeting once all evidence has been collated and the investigation has been concluded.
- An outcome will be reached, and you’ll be given the opportunity to appeal any decision if you disagree with it.
- If you still feel that you haven’t reached the outcome you were looking for, you might consider taking the case to an employment tribunal.
Employment Solicitors Near Me
If you’ve raised a grievance or you’re considering raising a grievance against your employer, it can be hard to know where to start.
But at Solicitors Near Me, we’re here to help.
We connect you with expert employment solicitors near to where you live for FREE, so you can get expert legal advice to help with whatever your grievance is, as well as the formal process involved.
You’re under no obligation to press ahead with the solicitor we connect you with and until you decide to proceed, everything is completely FREE.
Find An Employment Solicitor Now
To be connected to a specialist employment solicitor near to where you live, please either call us now on 0845 1391399 or complete a Free Online Enquiry.
