GRIEVANCE

CONTENTS
• Meaning of grievance

• Definition of grievance

• Features of grievance

• Forms of grievance

• Causes of grievance
 CONT..
• Effects of grievance

• Grievances handling

• Importance of grievance handling

• Grievances handling procedure

• Essentials for successful grievance handling

 MEANING

Grievance is a feeling of

dissatisfaction or suffering

or grief among the

workers.
 DEFINITION
Acc. to Keith Davis:-

“ Grievance is any real or imaginary

feeling of personal injustice which an employee has
concerning his employment relationship.”

Acc. to Dale Yoder:-

“Grievance is a written complaint

filed by an employee and claiming unfair treatment.”
 FEATURES
• A grievance reflects dissatisfaction or a feeling of
injustice with any aspect of the organization.
• The dissatisfaction must arise out of employment
and not from the personal or family problems.
• The dissatisfaction can arise out of the real or
imaginary reasons. The reasons may be valid or
invalid legislative or irrational.
• A grievance arises only when an employee feels that
injustice has been done to him.
• The dissatisfaction may be expressed verbally or in
writing.
• The grievance results from perceived non
fulfillment of one’s expectation from the
organization.
• Grievances, is not redressed in time tend to lower
morale and productivity of employees.
 FORMS

• Factual grievance

• Imaginary grievance

• Disguised grievance
 FACTUAL GRIEVANCE
When the legitimate needs of the employees

remains unfulfilled, it gives rise to factual

grievance

Example:-

A promotion has been promised to an

employee but not given citing various reasons.
IMAGINARY GRIEVANCE
Sometimes an employee is aggrieved not because
of any valid or legitimate reasons but because of a
wrong perception, wrong attitude or wrong
information. Such situation give rise to imaginary
grievance. Management is not at fault in this
situation, but still the employees has to be
satisfied.
DISGUISED GRIEVANCE

An employee may have dissatisfaction for

reasons that are not known to him and are
not directly related to the organization. An
employee may reach the office with heavy
heart due to some family pressure and then
he will look everything with a biased look.
 CAUSES
1. Grievance resulting from working conditions

2. Grievance resulting from Management

policy

3. Grievance resulting from Personal

maladjustment

4. Grievance resulting from violations

 FROM WORKING
CONDITIONS
• Poor physical conditions of work place

• Mismatch of workers with the job

• Poor relationship with the boss

• Unplanned changes in the schedules

• Unavailability of the machines and tools

• Failure to maintain the discipline

 FROM MANAGEMENT
POLICY
• Wage rate

• Leave

• Overtime

• Transfers

• Promotion, demotion and discharge

• lack of role clarity

• Penalties imposed for misconduct

• Lack of opportunities for career growth.

 FROM PERSONAL
MALADJUSTMENT
• Over ambition

• Excessive self esteem

• Impractical attitude to life

• Poor self esteem

FROM VIOLATIONS

• Collective bargaining agreement

• Central or state laws

• Responsibilities of management

• Company rules and regulations

EFFECTS OF GRIEVANCE
• Sense of frustration

• Non cooperation between the workers

• Loss of interest in work

• Affect on the quality and quantity of output

• Indiscipline which may take the form of

absenteeism, violence and strikes.
 GRIEVANCES
HANDLING
Grievance should be removed as

early as possible for creating

good labor management relations

And promoting efficiency.

Because it Will give rise to

further grievances.
IMPORTANCE OF G.H
• Grievance handling encourages the human problems to be
brought out.
• A grievances systems gives an opportunity to the workers
to express their feelings, fears, doubts and dissatisfaction.
• With the help of an effective grievance system, the
management comes to know about the behavior and
attitude of the superior towards their subordinates.
• A good grievance handling system boosts the morale
of the people working in the organization.
• Grievance procedure help to develop a good group
culture.
• Managers and supervisors tend to give more care to
the human aspects of their jobs because they know
that their actions are subject to challenge and review
in a grievance system.
 GRIEVANCES HANDLING
PROCEDURE
There is no legislative provision for a well defined
and adequate grievance procedure. The management
can adopt any procedure of its choice as:-
• Common procedure

• Model grievance procedure

• Grievance legislation
 COMMON PROCEDURE
The usual, common and informal procedure is first to approach the immediate
supervisor for the grievance and failing to get a satisfactory answer the second
step is to go directly to the departmental head or personnel relations officer in
the personnel department. If the worker is not satisfied here also he should
approach the top executive, but this is very rarely resorted to.

Some companies provide that if the complaint remains unsatisfied from the
response of top executive, the grievance should be referred to the arbitration
or joint grievance committee consisting of the representatives of both the
parties. The decision of the committee should be final.
 MODEL GRIEVANCE
PROCEDURE
This procedure is accepted by the labor conference in 1958 is as
follows:
• Officer designated by the management

• Head of department

• Grievance committee

• Manager

• Manager for revision

• Voluntary arbitration
 OFFICER DESIGNATED BY
THE MANAGEMENT
The aggrieved employee present his grievance verbally in
person to the officer designated by the management for
this purpose. The officer shall give the response with in 48
hours of the presentation of the complaint. If the worker
is not satisfied with the decision of the officer or fails to
receive the answer within 48 hrs., he will present his
grievance to the head of the department.
HEAD OF DEPARTMENT
The head of department shall give his answer

within three days or the action cannot be taken

within this period, the reason for delay should

be recorded. If the worker is dissatisfied with

the decision of the departmental head, he may

request that his grievance be forwarded to the

grievance committee.
 GRIEVANCE COMMITTEE
The grievance committee shall make its recommendations

to manager within 7 days of the worker’s request. If

decision should not be taken in this period the reason

should be recorded. Unanimous decision of the committee

shall be implemented by the management. If there is

difference in the opinion of members then the matter

shall be referred to the manager along with the views and

relevant papers.
 MANAGER
In either case, the final decision of the manager
shall be communicated to the employee within 3
days from the receipt of grievance committee’s
recommendations. If the worker is not satisfied
with the final decision of the manager he may
have the right to appeal to the manager for
revision.
 MANAGER FOR
REVISION
In making this appeal he may take a union
official along with him to facilitate discussion
with the management. The management will
communicate the decision within 7 days of
workmen’s revision petition. If the worker is still
not satisfied he can refer the matter to the
voluntary arbitration.
 VOLUNTARY
ARBITRATION
When the worker has taken the grievance for redresal
under the grievance procedure the formal conciliation
machinery shall not intervene till all steps in the
procedure have exhausted. A grievance shall be presumed
to assume the form of dispute only when the final decision
of the management is turned down by the worker. The
grievance committee shall consists of 4 to 6 members.
 GRIEVANCE
LEGISLATION
In Indian industry, adequate attention has not been paid to

the settlement of grievances. Legislative frame work only

indirectly deals with the redressal of individual grievances. At

present, there are three legislations dealing with grievances of

employees working in the industries. They are:

• The industrial employment act, 1946

• The industrial dispute act, 1947

• The factories act, 1948

 ESSENTIALS FOR
SUCCESSFUL GRIEVANCE
HANDLING
• Legal sanctity • Promptness

• Acceptability • Training

• Unambiguity • Follow up

• Simplicity
THE END