Grievance Meaning, Cause & Tips to Handle Employee Grievance | HRMantra

Grievance Meaning, Cause & Tips to Handle Employee Grievance | HRMantra

 4-5 minutes 

A grievance is a complaint raised by the employee to the management regarding dissatisfaction towards work environment, economic reason, HR policy, lack of work satisfaction, overworked or exhaustion, getting along with peers, etc. It helps to air formal complaints and is raised when an employee or group of employees nurture a negative feeling towards the management or workplace. It is an issue that may be reported directly to management or through HR. Once the problem is highlighted then it is at the discretion of the management if they want to address and rectify the proposed concern or they can simply neglect and continue the way things are.

Most of the time the management listens to the concerned employee and although may not address it many times rectifies the concerned employee''s grievance.

This glossary on employee grievances further reveals:

• What is a grievance?
• What leads to employee grievance?
• Tips to address employee grievance effectively
• Grievance Procedure in HRMantra

What is Grievance for an Employee?

To understand what exactly employee grievance in the workplace is, we will begin by understanding the literal meaning first and then try to connect it with the workspace.

Meaning of Grievance

Whenever any individual disapproves or is dissatisfied with any practice, event, or anything at the workplace, he conveys the same to express and correct it by way of presenting a grievance. In other words, it is something you dislike or want to complain about.

This is grievance meaning; now, let''s see it in terms of the workplace.

Employee Grievance Definition

In the context of an employee, it can be said that a grievance is the gap between what your employees expect and what you give them. Some grievances are very sensitive and should be heard with extra empathy and care. Changed behavior and performance is one such early sign of a grieving employee.

What Causes Employee Grievance?

The most remarkable causes of employee grievance are as follows:

• Any type of change in work-related thing without informing
• Action taken that is demoting or transferring
• Change in policy like overtime, leaves, promotion
• Change in health insurance, safety and other amenities
• Unpleasant work conditions
• Bad employee-employer relation
• Favoritism at workplace
• Bad boss, toxicity
• Lack of discipline and order in company/team

Tips to Address Employee Grievance Effectively

To handle the employee grievance effectively, we suggest you follow the below-mentioned tips:

• Set a grievance redressal system. Best way is to digitize it using help desk module in HR software.
• Once the grievance has been received, first acknowledge the same.
• If required, inquire about the grievance. How much are the claims that are being laid? How serious is the concern? Is it affecting beyond the claimant?
• Organize a formal meeting for the grievance to be heard by the necessary parties required.
• Give a solution in writing. Discuss with the employee about the redressal that an employee accepted during the grievance and what you did not accept with reasons.
• Now see if the employee accepted or rejected the resolution and appealed again.
• Go back to the situation in great detail.
• Try to give a solution that is permanent and resolves the root cause of the grievance so that no other employee raises their voice over that issue again.

Grievance Procedure in HRMantra

How to register a grievance in HRMantra HR software? How is it a better way to handle grievances?

Below we share exactly how. Take a Look.

• HRMantra Helpdesk module is a conversational ticketing system that allows the employee to raise their concern to the right department and person.
• The module lets employees define the turnaround time so they get resolution in time.
• Meanwhile, the department gets time to manage its tasks and investigate the grievance in its own time.
• This way, not every grievance is raised to the HR department. They barely have employees standing right beside their desk with the concern every now and then.
• The best part is, the productivity of the employees and department concern are raised to doesn''t get hampered.
• There is also a chat option within the raised ticket for better clarity to the department involved and a solution to the employee on the concern.

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