7/31/2019 Greivance

1/21

GRIEVANCE

MEANING AND CONTENT

Grievance can be defined as any discontent or dissatisfaction with any

aspect of the organization.

When a complaint remains unattended and the employee concerned feels

a lack of justice and fair play, then the dissatisfaction grows and assumes a

status of grievance.

The concept grievance', has been variously defined by different

authorities.

According to Prof. Jucius , Any discontent or dissatisfaction, whether

expressed or not, whether valid or not, arising out of anything connected with

the company that an employee thinks, believes, or even feels is unfair, unjust or

inequitable".

According to Keith Davis, It is "any real or imagined feeling of personal

injustice which an employee has concerning his employment relationship."

According to Beach , "any dissatisfaction or feeling of injustice m

connection with one's employment situation that is brought to the notice of the

management.

The International Labor Organization defines grievance as "a

complaint one or more workers in respect of wages, allowances , conditions of

work and interpretation of service stipulations, covering such areas as overtime

leave, transfer, promotion, seniority, job assignment and termination of service."

In the opinion of the National Commission on Labour, "complaints affecting

1

7/31/2019 Greivance

2/21

one or more individual workers in respect of wage payments, overtime, leave,

transfer, promotion, seniority, work assignment and discharges constitute

grievances.

CHARACTERISTICS OF GRIEVANCES

Some noticeable features of grievance are as follows:

i) A grievance refers to any form of discontent or dissatisfaction with an

aspect of the organization.

ii) The dissatisfaction must arise out of employment and not due to personal

or family problems.

iii)A grievance may be written or verbal.

iv) A grievance may be voiced or unvoiced.

v) A grievance may be valid or invalid, legitimate or irrational, justifiable or

ridiculous.

vi) A grievance give rise to unhappiness, discontent, frustration, indifference

to work, poor morale and ultimately results inefficiency and low

productivity,.

vii) Broadly speaking, a grievance is traceable to perceived non-fulfillment

of one's expectations from the organization

FORMS OF GRIEVANCES

A grievance may take any one of the following forms:

2

7/31/2019 Greivance

3/21

i) Factual

ii) Imaginary

iii) Disguised

FACTUAL: A factual grievance arises when legitimate needs of employees

remain unfulfilled, e.g., wage hike has been agreed but not implemented citing

various reasons. These grievances reflect the drawbacks in the implementation

of the organizational policies.

IMAGINARY: When an employee's dissatisfaction is not because of any

valid reason but because of wrong perception, wrong attitude or wrong

information he has. Such a situation may create an imaginary grievance Though

management is not at fault in such instances, still it has to clear the 'fog'

immediately. However, such grievances can have far-reaching consequences on

the organization because the employees are likely to develop an altogether

negative attitude towards the organization which decreases their effectiveness

and involvement in work.

DISGUISED: An employee may have dissatisfaction for reasons that are

unknown to himself. In general organizations consider the basic requirements of

their employees. Psychological needs of the employees such- as need for

recognition, affection, power, achievement, etc., are normally unattended and

ignored. For instance, an employee complaining very strongly about the

working conditions in the office may in turn be seeking some recognition and

appreciation from his or her colleagues. Hence, disguised grievances should

also be considered since they do have far-reaching consequences in case they

are unattended and ignored

3

7/31/2019 Greivance

4/21

NATURE OF GRIEVANCES

A grievance is a problem and submitted by an employee or several employees

of different types. It may be .concerning a situation or likely to affect the termsand conditions of employment of one worker or several workers, if a problem is

related to and endorsed by all or majority of employees or if trade union submits

a problem as a general claim it fails outside the scope of grievance procedure

and generally comes under the purview of collective bargaining. Thus, if an

issue is wider in scope or general in nature it will be outside, the grievance

machinery. For example, if majority of employees or the trade union in anorganization demand wage revision, such issue does not come under the scope

of. grievance machinery and falls within the scope of collective bargaining. In

contrast, if the workers of different departments submit to the management that

their wage is not in accordance with the award given by wage Boards and if

they ask the management to correct the wage inequity such issue falls within the

scope of grievance machinery. Thus, a grievance:

i) Has a narrower perspective.

ii) Is concerned with the interpretation of a contract or award as concerned

to an individual or a few employees of different types.

As such policy issues do not fail within the scope of grievance machinery.

CAUSES/SOURCES OF GRIEVANCES

Calhoon observes , "Grievances exist in the minds of individuals, are

produced and dissipated by situations, are fostered or healed by group pressures,

are adjusted or made worse by supervisors and are nourished or dissolved by the

climate in the organization which is affected by all the above factors and by the

management."

4

7/31/2019 Greivance

5/21

The main causes of grievance may be classified under the following categories:

1) Grievance resulting from working conditions :

i) Tight production standards.

ii) Improper matching of the worker with the job.

iii) Non-availability of proper tools, machines and equipment for doing the

job.

iv) Changes in schedules or procedures.

v) Poor relationship with the supervisor.

vi) Bad physical conditions of work places.

vii) Failure to maintain proper discipline (excessive discipline or lack of it,

both are equally harmful).

2) Grievances resulting from personal Maladjustment :

i) Excessive self-esteem.

ii) Over-ambition

iii) Impractical attitude to life, etc.

3) Grievances resulting from Management Policy:

i) Overtime

i) Transfer

ii) Leave

iii) Hostility towards a labour-union

iv) Wage payment and job rates.

v) Seniority

vi) Promotion, demotion and discharge.

5

7/31/2019 Greivance

6/21

vii) Lack of career planning and employee development plan,

Grievances resulting from alleged violation of:

i) Past practice.

ii) Management's responsibility.

iii)The collective bargaining agreement.

iv) Company rules.

v) Central or state laws.

Two American experts are of the view that there are three main factors

which contribute to the employee grievances. They are:

I) MANAGEMENT PRACTICES

a) The style of management followed, be it autocratic at one end of the scale

or totally participative at the other, would need to be related to the socio-

cultural orientation of the workforce.

b) Grievance is also caused because the social distance between

management and workers, their class and cultural orientations are widely

different.

c) Much also depends on the implementation of personnel policies-it the

implementation falls short of the intended policy then the resultant gap

could give rise to grievances.

d) Poor communication between management and its employees is another

cause of grievance.

e) Supervisory practices are a major source of grievance.

II)UNION PRACTICES

a) Multiplicity of unions.

6

7/31/2019 Greivance

7/21

b) Political affiliation.

III) INDIVIDUAL PERSONALITY TRAILS

a) An individual's personality also has a bearing on the usage of the

grievance machinery. Some are basically predisposed to grumble and find

fault with every little matter, seeking and looking out only for faults.

b) Sometimes mental tension, caused perhaps by ill health, also contributes

to this, in the sense that a tense mind finds an outlet in voicing a spate of grievances.

c) On the other hand, there are employees who are willing to outlook minor

issues and discomforts and get on with the job.

d) Notwithstanding personality traits, the atmosphere or the culture that

prevails could also contribute to this phenomenon. An antagonistic

atmosphere could result in even a trivial matter being blown out of proportion, which in more co-operative times would not even have been

noticed.

It should be noted here that there is no single factor which causes a grievance;

many factors combine to generate a grievance; and both employer and

employees have grievances, the one against the other.

Tosum up, employee grievances may be due to:

i) Demands for individual wage adjustments.

ii) Complaints about the incentive system.

iii) Complaints about the job classifications.

iv) Complaints against a particular foreman.

v) Complaints concerning disciplinary measures and procedures.

7

7/31/2019 Greivance

8/21

vi) Objections to the general methods of supervision.

vii) Loose calculation and interpretation of seniority rules, and unsatisfactory

interpretation of agreements.

viii) Improper job assignment. . .

ix) Disciplinary discharge or lay-off.

x) Non-availability of materials in time.

xi) Undesirable or unsatisfactory conditions of work.

xii) Promotions.

xiii) Violation of contracts relating to collective bargaining

xiv) Inadequacy of safety and health services/devices.

xv) Transfer for another department or another shift.

DISCOVERY OF GRIEVANCES

Grievances can be uncovered in a number of ways. Gossip and Grapevine offer

vital clues about employees grievances. Gripe boxes, open door policies,

periodic interviews, exit surveys could also be undertaken to uncover the

mystery surrounding grievances. These methods are discussed below:

1) Observation : A manager/supervisor can usually track the behaviours of

people working under him. If a particular employee is not getting along

with people, spoiling materials due to carelessness or recklessness,

showing indifference to commands, reporting late for work or is remaining

absent-the signals are fairly obvious. Since the supervisor is close to the

scene of action, he can always find out such unusual behaviours and report

8

7/31/2019 Greivance

9/21

promptly.

2) Grievance Procedure : A systematic grievance procedure is the

best means to highlight employee dissatisfaction at various levels.

Management, to this end, must encourage employees to use it whenever

they have anything to say. In the absence of such a procedure, grievances

pile up and burst up in violent forms at a future date. By that things might

have taken an ugly shape altogether, impairing cordial relations between

labour and management. If management fails to induce employees to

express their grievances, unions will take over and emerge as powerful

bargaining representatives.

3) Gripe Boxes : A gripe box may be kept at prominent locations in the

factory for lodging anonymous complaints pertaining to any aspect

relating to work. Since the complainant need not reveal his identity, he can

express his feelings of injustice or discontent lankly and without any

fear of victimization.

4) Open door Policy : This is a kind of walk-in-meeting with the manager when the employee can express his feelings openly about any work related

grievance. The manager can cross-check the details of the complaint

through various means at his disposal.

5) Exit interview : Employees usually leave their current jobs due to

dissatisfaction or better prospects outside. If the manager tries sincerely

through an exit interview he might be able to find out the real reasons why

'x' is, leaving the organization. To elicit valuable information, the manager

must encourage the employee to give a correct picture so as to rectify the

mistakes promptly. If the employee is not providing fearless answers, he

may be given questionnaire to fill up and post the same after getting all his

dues cleared from the organization where he is currently employed.

6) Opinion Surveys : Surveys may be conducted periodically to elicit the

9

7/31/2019 Greivance

10/21

opinions of employees

about the organization and its policies.

It is better to use as many channels as possible, if the intention is to uncover thetruth behind the curtain.

APPROACHES TO THE GRIEVANCE MACHINERY

Various approaches have been documented reflecting the attitude of

management and employees to the grievance machinery. Management could

take a legalistic view and follow the negotiated contract, or it need not have acontract but have a grievance machinery oriented towards a human relations

approach to its workers. Or, alternatively, management could, with or without a

contract, have an open-door policy. We shall now examine some of these

approaches.

i) The labour contract approach is a wholly legalistic approach. The

management and the worker, categories covered by the contract, follow

the provisions therein. Grievances are those defined by the contract, and

the process for dealing with the grievance is clear to all concerned and

specified with the time span for each stage. The provisions and the

interpretations thereon of the contract are of paramount importance, more

than concern for specific exceptions depending on the circumstances of

the case.

ii) The human relations school is the antithesis of the legal contract school.

The employee and his specific problem is the major concern. The concern

is for understanding and doing something to help overcome the

individuals' problem, the fundamental assumption being that individuals

are more important than production targets. It is quite likely that

understanding their needs and grievances will help in attaining production

10

7/31/2019 Greivance

11/21

targets, but primarily individuals are the end rather than a means to the

end.

Obviously, these are two extreme situations; many organizations have practices some-where in between. It is possible to envisage a contract with a

human relations approach, infact, in the final analysis, it amounts to the "spirit"

in which the grievance procedure is implemented in an organization involving

both managerial and worker attitudes.

EFFECTS OF GRIEVANCES

Grievances, if they are not identified and redressed, may affect adversely the

workers, managers and the organization. The effects are:

i) On production:- It includes

a) Low quality of production

b) Low quality of productivity.

c) Increase in the wastage of material, spoilage/leakage of machinery,

d) Increase in the cost of production per unit.

ii) On the employees

a) Increases the rate of absenteeism and turnover.

b) Reduces the level of commitment, sincerity and punctuality.

c) Increases the incidence of accidents.

d) Reduces the level of employee morale.

iii) On the managers

a) Stains the superior-subordinate relations.

b) Increases in indiscipline cases.

11

7/31/2019 Greivance

12/21

c) Increase in unrest and thereby machinery to maintain industrial peace.

d) Increases the degree of supervision, control and follow-up.

GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE

The grievance procedure is one of the more important means available for

employees to express their dissatisfaction. It is also a means available to

management to keep a check or relevant diagnostic data on the state of the

organization's health.

The formal mechanism for dealing with worker's dissatisfaction is called thegrievance procedure. It is generally a formal system of several steps through

which an affected employee can take his grievance to successively-higher levels

of management for redressed.

A grievance procedure is necessary in a large organization which has numerous

personnel and many different levels with the result that the manager is unable to

keep a check on each individual, or be involved in every aspect of the working

of the organization. In a small organization, communication, knowledge and

contact is possible to a much greater extent, thus reducing the need for a formal

grievance procedure.

NEED FOR A GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE

Grievance procedure is necessary for any organization due to the following

reasons:

i) Most grievances seriously disturb the employees. This may affect their

morale, productivity and their willingness to cooperate with the

organization. If an explosive situation develops, this can be promptly

attended to if a grievance handling procedure is already in existence.ii) It is not possible that all the complaints of the employees would be settled

12

7/31/2019 Greivance

13/21

by first-time supervisors, for these supervisors may not have had a proper

training for the purpose, and they may lack authority. Moreover, there

may be personality conflicts and other causes as well.

iii)It serves as a check on the arbitrary actions of the management because

supervisors know that employees are likely is see to it that their protest

does reach the higher management

iv) It selves as an outlet for employee gripes, discontent and frustrations.

v) The management has complete authority to operate the business as it sees

fit-subject, of course, to its legal and moral obligations and the contracts

it has entered into with its workers or their representative trade union. Butif the trade union or the employees do not like the way the management

functions, they can submit their grievance in accordance with the

procedure laid down for that purpose.

A well-designed and a proper grievance procedure provide:

i) A channel or avenue by which any aggrieved employee may present hisgrievance.

ii) A procedure which ensures that there will be a systematic handling of

every grievance.

iii)A method by which an aggrieved employee can relieve his feelings of

dissatisfaction with his job, working conditions, or with the

management.iv) A means of ensuring that there is some measure of promptness in the

handling of the grievance.

BASIC ELEMENTS OF A GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE

The basic elements of a grievance redressed procedure are:

i) The existence of a sound channel through which a grievance may pass for

13

7/31/2019 Greivance

14/21

redressed if the previous stage or channel has been found to be

inadequate, unsatisfactory or unacceptable. This stage may comprise

three, four or five sub-stages.

ii) The procedure should be simple, definite and prompt, for any complexity

or vagueness or delay may lead to an aggravation of the dissatisfaction

of the aggrieved employee

iii)The steps in handling a grievance should be clearly defined.

These should comprise:

a) Receiving and defining the nature of the grievance.

b) Getting at the relevant facts, about the grievance.

c) Analysis the facts, after taking into consideration the economic, social,

psychological and legal

issues involved in them.

d)Taking an appropriate decision after a carefui consideration of all the

facts.e) Communicating the decisions, to the aggrieved employee

iv) Whatever the decision, it should be followed up in order that the reaction

of the decision may be known and in order to determine whether the

issue has been closed or not.

ESSENTIAL PREREQUISITES OF A GRIEVANCE

PROCEDURE

The efficiency of a grievance procedure depends upon the fulfillment of certain

pre-requisites.

These are as follows:

14

7/31/2019 Greivance

15/21

1. Conformity with Statutory Provisions : Due consideration

must be given to the prevailing legislation while designing the

grievance handling procedure.

2. Unambiguity: Every aspect of the grievance handling

procedure should be clear and unambiguous. All employees

should know whom to approach first when they have a grievance,

whether the complaint should be written or oral, the maximum time

in which the redressed is assured, etc. The redressing official

should also know the limits within which he can take the required

action.

3. Simplicity : The grievance handling procedure should be simple,

and short, if the procedure is

complicated it may discourage employees and they may fail to

make use of it in a proper manner.

4. Promptness: The grievance of the employee should be promptly

handled and necessary action

must be taken immediately. This is good for both the employee and

management because if the

wrong doe is punished late, it may affect the morale of other

employees as well.

5. Training : The supervisors the union representatives should be

properly trained in all aspects of grievance handling beforehand or

else it will complicate the problem.

6. Follow-up : The personnel department should keep track of the

effectiveness and the functioning of grievance handling procedure

and make necessary changes to improve it from time to time.

Steps in the Grievance Procedure

15

7/31/2019 Greivance

16/21

1) Identify Grievances : Employee dissatisfaction or grievance should

be identified by the management if they are not expressed. If they are

ventilated, management has to promptly acknowledge them.

2) Define Correctly : The management has to define the problem

properly and accurately after it is identified/acknowledged.

Steps in the Grievance Procedure

3) Collect Data : Complete information should be collected from all the

parties relating to the grievance. Information should be classified as facts

data, opinions etc.

4) Analyze and Solve : The information should be analyzed, alternative

solutions to the problem should be developed and the best solution should

be selected.

5) Prompt Redressal : The grievance should be redressed by

implementing the solution.

6) Implement and follow-up : implementation of the solution must be

followed up at every stage in order to ensure effective and speedy

16

7/31/2019 Greivance

17/21

implementation

MODEL GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE

The model grievance procedure suggested by the National Commission on

Labour involves six successive time-bound steps each leading to the next, in

case of dissatisfaction.

Model Grievance Procedure

i) The aggrieved worker in the first instance will approach the foreman and

tells him of his grievance orally.

ii) The foreman has to redress his grievance and if the worker is not satisfied

with this redressal, he can approach the supervisor.

iii)The supervisor has to provide an answer within 48 hours. In the event of

the supervisor not giving an answer or the answer not being acceptable

to the worker, the worker goes to the next step.

iv) At this stage the worker (either alone or accompanied by his departmental

representative) approaches the Head of the Department who has to give

an answer within three days.

v) If the Departmental Head fails to give an answer or if the worker is not

satisfied with his answer, the worker may appeal to the Grievance

17

7/31/2019 Greivance

18/21

committee, consisting of the representatives of the employer & the

employees

vi) The recommendations of this committee should be communicated to the

manager within seven days from the date of the grievance reaching it.

vii) Unanimous decisions, if any : of the committee shall be implemented by

the management.

viii) If there is no unanimity, the views of the members of the

committee shall be placed before the manager for his decision. The

manager has to take a decision and inform the worker within three days.

ix) The worker can make an appeal against the manager's decision and suchare appeal has to be decided within a week.

A union official may accompany the worker to the manager for discussion and

if no decision is arrived at this stage, both the union and management may refer

the grievance to voluntary arbitration within a week of the receipt of the

managements decision.

The worker in actual practice, may not resort to all the above mentioned steps.

For example, if the grievance is because of his dismissal or discharge he can

make an appeal against dismissal or discharge.

Grievance Machinery in Indian Industry

At present, there are three legislations dealing with grievances of employees

working in industries.

i) The Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946.

ii) The Factories Act, 1948,

iii) The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.

The Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 requires that every

18

7/31/2019 Greivance

19/21

establishment employing 100 or more workers should frame standing orders.

These should contain, among other things, a provision for redressal of

grievances of workers against unfair treatment and wrongful exactions by the

employer or his agents.

The Factories Act, 1948 provides for the appointment of a welfare officer in

every factory ordinarily employing 500 or more workers. These welfare officers

also look after complaints and grievances of workers. They will look after

proper implementation of the existing labour legislation.

Individual disputes relating to discharge, dismissal or retrenchment can be taken

up for relief under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 amended in 1965.

However, the existing labour legislation is not being implemented properly by

employers. There is lack of fairness on their part. Welfare officers have also not

been taken for protecting the interests of workers in the organized sector. In

certain cases, they are playing a dual role. It is unfortunate that the public

sector,, which should setup an example for the private sector, has not been

implementing the labour laws properly.

In India, there is a model Grievance Procedure which was adopted by the Indian

labour conference in' its 16 m session held in 1958. At present, Indian industries

are adopting either the model Grievance Procedure or procedures formulated by

themselves with modifications in the Modes Grievance Procedure. In other words, at present, the grievance procedures are voluntary in the Indian industry.

GUIDELINES FOR HANDLING GRIEVANCE

The following guidelines may help a supervisor while dealing with grievances.

He need not follow all these steps in every case. It is sufficient to keep these

views in mind while handling grievances (W. Baer. 1970).

19

7/31/2019 Greivance

20/21

i) Treat each case as important and get the Grievance in writing.

ii) Talk to the employee directly, encourage him to speak the truth. Give him

a patient hearing.

iii) Discuss in a private place Ensure confidentiality, if necessary.

iv) Handle each Case within a time frame.

v) Examine company Provisions in each case. Identify violations, if any. Do

not hold back the remedy if the company is wrong. Inform your superior

about all grievances.

vi) Get all relevant facts about the grievance. Examine the personnel records

of the aggrieved worker. See whether any witnesses are available. Visitthe work area. The idea is to find where things have gone wrong and

who is at fault.

vii) Gather information from the union representative, what he has to say,

what he wants, etc. Give short replies, uncovering the truth as well as

provisions. Treat him properly.

viii) Control your emotions, your remarks and behaviour,ix) Maintain proper records and follow up the action taken in each case

Guiding Principles of Grievance Procedure

The guiding principles under the Model Procedure:

i) Conformity with Existing Legislation: A procedure should form part of

an integrated scheme which should promote satisfactory relations

between employees and management.

Need for Simple and Expeditious (Machinery: it was laid down that, as far as

possible,

a) A grievance should be settled at the lowest level;

b) No matter should ordinarily be taken up at more than two levels;

20

7/31/2019 Greivance

21/21

c) Different types of grievances should be referred to appropriate bodies or

authorities.

iii) Workmen Should Knew Whom to Approach: For this purpose, it should beessential for the management to designate the authority or body to be contacted

at various levels

21