Managers: Laws and Rules
Grievances
A grievance is a dispute or disagreement between an employee and the employer over some term or condition of employment, or over the interpretation or application of policy, rule, or law.
Each agency is required to have a grievance procedure.
The grievance procedure must involve the use of a standard form, identify the steps to be followed and the time limitations, require the parties to respond, allow the employee a reasonable amount of time to process the grievance without loss of pay, and count the time in working days.
Some grievances may be appealed to Human Resource Management Services following completion of the agency's grievance process.
Recommendations
Each party to a grievance should attempt to resolve the dispute at the lowest possible level.
Supervisors and managers should make a concerted effort to learn the facts associated with a grievance before responding to it.
Human Resource Management Services has SFN 18409 (1.5Mb rtf), a model grievance form, available for agency use.
The employment services section of Human Resource Management Services provides mediation services at no charge as an alternative to the standard grievance and appeal process.
