The end result may be lower employee morale, lower productivity and lower service level affecting the operations of the department and company.
It is important that employees be given an avenue to seek redress or help to resolve the dispute as soon as possible. Available guidelines put in place as a policy need not be too complex or to the extent of being bureaucratic and intimidating for use. Simplicity and practicality are advocated.
A dispute resolution policy is similarly known as a conflict resolution or grievance handling policy.
What to Include in a Dispute Resolution Policy
Generally, disputes or grievances in the office are broad and may be categorized as conflicts, concerns, harassments and misunderstandings.
Establishing the scope of the policy for handling employee grievances is the first step. The scope of the policy may include the following:
- Stating a consistent principle for application i.e. the policy applies to all levels of employees in the company including senior executives
- Stating the approaches for help opened to employees
- Indicating a specific time frame for resolving the grievance – immediately or earliest opportunity
Some thinly disguised grievances may need to be excluded from the scope. If not, the daily managing and running of the company's operations would be undermined by employee pleads and unproductive discussions. The following issues could be viewed as the prerogatives of the company and be considered for exclusion from a dispute resolution policy:
- Company policies and work procedures
- Work rules and working conditions
- Company benefits
In a company unionized situation where collective bargaining is sanctioned by law, the reader may need to reference the law, as labor and industrial practices may vary from country to country.
Approaches to Dispute or Grievance Handling
There are various approaches successfully implemented by companies. Two are discussed below.
The informal approach:
The written policy could encourage employees to bring up their grievances directly with fellow colleagues, managers, supervisors or executives by engaging in constructive discussions. This has the benefit of forcing employees learn how to resolve disputes on their own and also free up supervisors' time if the issue in question is trivial.
The company's undertaking to support and provide assistance from a broad range of options and resources in efforts to resolve grievances could be reflected in the policy. Company resources opened to employees when a dispute arises may include:
- Self help effort – When employees speak directly with the person whom he or she has an issue with in the first instance, there is support and acceptance by supervisors of the company.
- Open door policy – Employees may consult informally with any manager, supervisor or executive for help and to receive assistance in the form of listening, coaching, suggested options, friendly advice or even intervention.
- Human Resources – Employees may seek HR's views regarding the handling of the issue.
The formal approach:
When an employee grievance could not be settled by the informal approach, an established formal procedure for mediation should be made available. Broadly, there are three recommended steps in the approach:
- Step 1 – Involve the employee's supervisor. If the issue relates to the immediate supervisor, then the second level of supervision i.e. the supervisor of the employee's immediate superior would have to be involved.
- Step 2 – Involvement of the Human Resources department if the employee disagrees with the decision made in Step 1.
- Step 3 – Request in writing for an executive review if the employee disagrees with HR's decision in Step 2. A member of the senior management or an assigned senior executive as required could then be assigned to review the issue.
As a senior level staff is involved in Step 3 depending on the magnitude of the grievance, the employee request ought to be submitted in writing in a dispute resolution form or as a email request whichever the company allows or deems appropriate. The decision handed down in Step 3 should be respected and becomes final. At some point, there must be a closure and the matter must not be allowed to drag on indefinitely.
Time Frame to Resolve a Dispute or Grievance
Most human resources experts would advocate resolving an employee dispute as soon as possible. A requirement that the employee brings up the issue to the next level within a specific period if he or she disagrees with the decision of the mediator, is strongly recommended. Some guidelines included in the written policy for each step in a formal approach, would set the right employee expectation and reduce the tendency to procrastinate for all.
For example, setting a twenty day time limit before the next step in the process may appear sufficient and reasonable. Prolonging the closure is prolonging the agony in itself.
If the employee does not adhere to the established time limits with good reason, the decision of the representative reviewing the issue at each step should be final. The employee should be deemed to have waive the right to pursue the issue further in any company forum.
Read: Employee Dispute Resolution in the Office for pointers on conducting employee grievance meetings.
Tick Yee Kok - Tick Yee Kok, a freelance writer for Suite 101 loves reading, writing and meeting people from all walks of life. TY as he is also known, ...
