Managing Employee Grievances has always been a huge task for HR. Be it using a simple HRMS or manually, managing grievances and employee relations always comes out as a headache. And to make it simple, there are many employee relation management software available. But what to look out for in such software? And more importantly, are they worth the price?
But before all of that, you will need to understand what exactly “employee grievance” means. What causes grievances, how to identify them, and lastly, how to deal with them.
What is a Grievance?
A Grievance is a written complaint submitted by an employee to the HR department or any superior authority. A formal grievance is always in written form and needs to be addressed as quickly as possible by the employer or superior. Nowadays, oral grievances are also accepted by HR. This is because of the rise in the importance of employee satisfaction and turnover rates in the industry.
So, now that we know what a grievance is, let us see what causes employee dissatisfaction, leading to grievances.
→ What causes Grievance in the Workplace?
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Wages :
Unfair wages are the leading cause of employee dissatisfaction. A grievance will be filed if the employee feels that they are being paid less than the industry average. Even if they feel they are being paid less than some other employees at the same level as them, they will feel dissatisfied with the management.
You as HR must ensure that no employee feels unfairly paid. One solution is to run employee satisfaction surveys or have a monthly or quarterly one-on-one session where you can learn about the problems they are facing at the workplace. -
Work Conditions :
The next big factor that causes employee dissatisfaction is the work conditions. The work conditions must be ideal for the employees to put out their best efforts. You must take care that the workplace is in ideal condition, factors like the temperature, employee relations, communication with superiors, and other amenities for employee convenience matter a lot.
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Employee Relations :
Next up is employee relations. Are the employees happy with their team and manager? Are they willing to collaborate and put forth ideas without the fear of judgment? These are some things that you need to ensure you ask the employees on a regular basis. Without coordination and a good relationship, it is extremely difficult to get the best from the employees.
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Favoritism and Discrimination :
Another common cause of grievance is favoritism and discrimination among employees. If an employee is being paid more than another employee on the same level. If they are getting lesser leaves or benefits than other employees. In such cases, it not only causes a sense of discrimination but also demotivates the employees.
Favoritism is also against the ethics of management and no manager or supervisor must treat an employee differently from the rest. It is your responsibility as HR to consider such cases and make a note of it if you see any such incidents.
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Policy Changes :
Policy changes in an organization are also a cause of employee grievance. Going from hybrid working to completely operating on-site or from home, outsourcing more work than usual, huge layoffs, etc are some examples of policy changes that an organization might make.
Now, this is not to say that you should not change your organizational policies at all. But in case you are doing it, you should consider employee opinions and run satisfaction surveys to see if the employees are okay with it. You might need to tweak the policies a bit to make them fit for the organization. After all, your employees are your biggest assets.
→ How to Identify Employee Grievance?
Okay, you know the causes of employee grievance now but how exactly do you identify grievances? How do you put all the theory we discussed above into practice? Well, keep reading to know.
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Employee Feedback :
The simplest and most effective way of identifying grievances is to take employee feedback on a regular basis. First-hand feedback in one-on-one sessions is the most reliable way of getting to know the employees better. It not only enables the employees to speak fearlessly but also lets you understand the needs of the employees better.
A feedback session can be run quarterly or semi-annually. You can also run online employee satisfaction surveys which can be filled in minutes if you do not have the time for one-on-one sessions. But such sessions are more beneficial because they enable you to know the employees personally. -
Open-door policy :
Open-door policy refers to when HR, manager, or superior is open to any complaints, feedback, suggestions, etc. The main aim of an open-door policy is to give the employees liberty of communication. An open-door policy encourages employees to give feedback and suggestions without the fear of judgment.
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Help Desk :
You might be familiar with the term ‘help desk” if you use a human resource management system. It is usually a module that lets you communicate with the employees digitally. Employees can log their complaints, queries, feedback, etc on the help desk. A good help desk system can sort these queries into various categories and can sort them according to seriousness and priority.
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Previous HR & Supervisor Records :
Another reliable source of data and complaints from employees is the previous records from HR and Supervisors. These records help you identify past grievances and not repeat the same mistake.
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Exit Interviews :
Finally, we have exit interviews. Making exit interviews a norm helps you understand why the employee is leaving. It might be personal issues or a need for change on the surface but many-a-times, there is an underlying reason to leave the organization. Exit interviews help you identify these causes and prevent other employees from leaving for the same reason.
Manage Grievances better with Infotrack’s ER Suite
Infotrack offers an all-inclusive Employee Relations Suite with a grievance life cycle, alerts and reminders for grievance management, and many more features and modules that help increase efficiency.
Infotrack’s ER Suite is completely configurable and flexible. This means that you can create categories and set priorities for grievances. You can also view the entire life cycle of a grievance at just one glance. This means you do not need to make notes or different tabs for every step that a grievance log takes. You can all the details in just one place.
Not only this, but the ER Suite’s Grievance management module also comes with an electronic protection system that ensures that only you and authorized personnel can view and manage the sensitive employee grievance data.
All in all, Infotrack’s ER Suite lets you manage employee grievances more efficiently. Grievances are a matter of high sensitivity and need to be addressed as soon as possible. This is because grievances are directly related to employee turnover rates and turnover rates are a major factor in determining the company’s reputation. So, it also boils down to the fact that better management of grievances can lead to a better reputation.
If you are looking for a reliable and efficient grievance management system, Infotrack’s ER Suite is the one-stop solution to all your grievance management needs!
