Employees should be encouraged to raise grievances informally with their immediate line manager. It should be possible for most grievances to be dealt with at this level.
Where an employee has made a complaint verbally, this can normally be classed as informal. Managers should be willing to deal with grievances irrespective of whether they are raised verbally or in writing. It should not be a requirement that grievances be raised formally in writing before they are dealt with by a manager.
Whenever an informal grievance is raised, the manager should arrange to meet the employee as soon as is reasonably practicable to establish why they are dissatisfied and to look for a solution to the problem.
