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INTRODUCTION
The inherent desire on the part of management and employees to exert control over the work
situation implies, Thomson and Murray suggest, that joint procedures ‘are the best, possibly the
only, way of bringing the two separate control systems to terms with each other’. Where such
procedures are negotiated between management and unions, and involve employee or union
representatives in their operations, they represent an important part of the organizational system
of joint regulation: the formal interface between, at an organizational level, management and
union and, at a more organizational level, managers and employees. It is the decision and
practices implemented through such procedures which determine the nature of the
management/employee relationship, provide the clearest evidence of management’s intention
and by which management is judged as an employer. While procedures can provide a degree of
consistency in the way people are treated, management generally seeks to retain a degree of
flexibility to treat issues on their merits.
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GRIEVANCE
1.1 Definition:
• A grievance is a formal dispute between an employee & management on the conditions
of employment.
• Grievances are complaints that have been formally registered in accordance with the
grievance procedure.
• A grievance is any dissatisfaction or feeling of injustice in connection with one’s
employment situation that is brought to the attention of the management.
• Prof. Pigors and Meyers define grievance as dissatisfaction. According to them,
dissatisfaction of an employee is anything that disturbs the employee, whether expressed
or not.
• Dale Yoder defines it as “a written complaint filed by an employee and claiming unfair
treatment”.
1.2 Causes of Grievance:
• Economic
– Wage fixation, wage computation, overtime, bonus
– Employees feel they are getting less than what they ought to get
• Working Environment
– Poor working conditions, defective equipment and machinery, tools, materials.
• Supervision
– Disposition of the boss towards the employee perceived notions of favoritism,
nepotism, bias etc.
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• Work Group
– Strained relations or incompatibility with peers. Feeling of neglect, obstruction
and victimization.
• Work Organization
– Rigid and unfair rules, too much less work responsibility, lack of recognition
1.3 Effects of Grievance:
• Loss of interest in work
• Poor quality of production
• Low production
• Increase in wastage or costs
• Indiscipline
• Unrest
• Increase in accidents
1.4 Categories that Grievance must fall:
• Amenities
• Compensation
• Conditions of work
• Continuity of service
• Disciplinary action
• Fines
• Leave
• Medical benefits
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• Nature of job
• Payments
• Promotions
• Safety environment
• Super Annulation
• Supersession
• Transfers
• Victimization
1.5 Sources of Grievance:
Managerial conditions:
✓ Pay Scale or Wage rates
✓ Overtime
✓ Benefits – Promotions, Incentives, Seniority and Discharges.
✓ Lack of role clarity
✓ Autocratic Leadership style of supervisors.
✓ Lack regards for collective agreement.
Working conditions:
✓ Unrealistic
✓ Non-availability of proper tool, machines and equipment for doing the job.
✓ Tight production standards
✓ Bad working conditions
✓ Poor relationship with the supervisor.
✓ Negative approach to discipline.
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Personal factors:
✓ Narrow attitude
✓ Over ambition
✓ Egoistic Personality
✓ Non- cooperative.
✓ Personal Problems outside factory
1.6 Guidance for writing Grievance:
• The Situation
-Who, what, when & where
• The Contention
-Why is it grieve-able
• The Remedy
-What is needed to remedy the situation
1.7 Grievance Identification Techniques:
1. Observation
• Knowledge of human behavior is requisite quality of good manager. From the changed
behavior of any employee , he should snuff the causes of grievances, without its
knowledge to the employee.
2. Grip boxes
• The suggestion boxes, for instance are placed at easily accessible spots to most
employees in the organization. The employees can file anonymous complaints about
their dissatisfaction in these boxes.
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3. Open door policy
• Most of the organizations still don’t practice this but open door policy demands that the
employees, even at the lowest rank, should have easy access to the Chief Executive to get
his grievances redressed
4. Exit interview
• These interviews are conducted to know the reasons for leaving the job. Properly
conducted exit interviews can provide significant information about the strengths and
weaknesses of the organization and can pave way for further improvements.
1.8 Bangladesh labour code 2006:
33. Grievance procedure : (1) Any worker, including a worker who has been laid-off,
retrenched, discharged, dismissed, removed, or otherwise removed from employment, who has
grievance in respect of any matter covered under this chapter, and intends to seek redress thereof
under this section, shall submit his grievance to his employer, in writing, by registered post
within thirty days of being informed of the cause of such grievance. Provided that if the
employer acknowledges receipt of the grievance, in that case the service by registered post shall
not be essential.
(2) The employer shall within fifteen days of receipt of such grievance, enquire into the matter,
give the worker an opportunity of being heard and communicate his decision, in writing to him.
(3) If the employer fails to give a decision under sub-section (2) or if the worker is dissatisfied
with such decision, he may make a complain in writing to the Labour court within thirty days
from the last date under sub-section (2) or within thirty days from the date of the decision, as the
case may be.
(4) The Labour court shall, on receipt of the complaint hear the parties after giving notice to
them and make such orders as it may deem just and proper.
(5) The Labour court, may amongst other relief, direct reinstatement of the complainant in
service, either with or without back wages and convert the order of dismissal, removal or
discharge to any other Lesser punishment specified in section 23(2).
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(6) Any person aggrieved by an order of the Labour court, may, within thirty days of the order,
prefer an appeal to the tribunal, and the decision of the Tribunal on such appeal shall be final.
(7) No court-fees shall be payable for lodging complaint or appeal under this section.
(8) No complaint under this section shall amount to prosecution under this Act.
(9) Notwithstanding anything contained in this section, no complaint shall lie against an order of
termination of employment of a worker under section 26, unless such order is alleged to have
been made for his trade union activities or passed motivated or unless the worker concerned has
been deprived of the benefits specified in that section.
1.9 Grievance Handling:
W’s of Grievance Handling:
• WHO is involved
