Race statutory grievance procedure 

On this page

• Statutory grievance procedures
  
• Note of employer’s disciplinary and grievance procedures
  
• Written statement of grievance and first meeting
  
• The appeal
  
• Raising a grievance after you have left a job
  

Statutory grievance procedures

Before using these procedures you and your employer should attempt to resolve any dispute informally where possible.

The statutory grievance procedures introduced by the Dispute Resolution Regulations must be followed by all employers and employees if a complaint is formalised. These are only a minimum standard and some employers may already have grievance procedures which go further. It is important to note that they do not apply to other workers such as sub-contractors or freelance workers.

You should obtain advice on whether and, if so, how the procedures apply to you from your trade union representative, local Citizens Advice Bureau or ACAS.

You should be aware of the following points:

Note of employer’s disciplinary and grievance procedures

When a person starts work with a new employer, they must give the person within two months of starting, a written statement of employment particulars including a note of the employer’s disciplinary and grievance procedures. In particular, the note must set out any disciplinary rules which apply to employees and tell the employee who they should go to if they have a grievance.

Written statement of grievance and first meeting

The Dispute Resolution Regulations state that if you have a grievance you are required to send a written statement of it to your employer. Your employer must then arrange a meeting to discuss your grievance.

You have a right to be accompanied to this meeting by someone who works with you or a trade union official. The meeting must be held at a time and place which are reasonable for you and anyone accompanying you.

After the meeting the employer must tell you what he or she has decided. If you do not agree with his or her decision, you have a right of appeal and your employer should inform you of this.

The appeal

If you feel your grievance has not been satisfactorily dealt with, you should tell your employer you are going to appeal. He or she must arrange another meeting to discuss this and the same rules apply to this as the original meeting. If you do not appeal, but commence a claim in an employment tribunal, any compensation you are awarded may be reduced by between 10% and 50%.

After the appeal meeting the employer must tell you what he or she has decided and that is their final decision. If you are still not satisfied with the way you have been treated you can commence a claim in the employment tribunal.

Raising a grievance after you have left a job

If you leave a job but still have an outstanding grievance, you can pursue it using a shorter two-step procedure known as the modified procedure if:

• you and your employer agree in writing to use the modified procedure
• your employer did not know about the grievance procedure or the procedure was either not started or was started but not completed before you left the employment.

The two steps are:

• you send a written statement of grievance to your former employer
• your former employer writes back to you, answering the points you have raised.

Consequences of not following the statutory grievance procedures

Not following the procedures could have serious implications:

• unless you have first put your grievance in writing and you have allowed at least 28 days to pass, as a general rule you will no longer be able to make a claim in an employment tribunal, unless your grievance is about dismissal
• if the grievance, disciplinary or dismissal procedures have not been followed before the case goes to tribunal, the tribunal will decide whether it is the fault of the employer or you. If it is you, any money awarded will normally be decreased by at least 10% and possibly up to 50%. If the employer is at fault, any money awarded will normally be increased in the same way.