An Effective grievance management procedure is essential for enhanced work performance and organizational productivity.  In dealing with grievance, we must first understand the distinction between a complaint and a grievance.  Grievance administration is important machinery which enables organisations or companies to deal with matters that may affect the achievement of organisation or company objectives.

 

            A complaint is a discontent or dissatisfaction which has not yet assumed a great measure of importance to the complainant; a grievance however, is any dissatisfaction or feeling of injustice in connection with one’s employment situation that is brought formally to the attention of management.  In another line of thought, Beach S Dale (2003:26) defines grievance as “any injustice to an individual that is brought forward to the attention of the management”.  Management has the obligation to get to the root cause of an employee’s grievance so that the smooth functioning of the organisation is prevailed.  This can be possibly done by putting an effective administration procedure to redress issues of complaints and grievances which if left unattended to would yield negative results in an organisation.

 

            Basically, there are two approaches to grievance handling; these are the narrow and broad approaches.  The usual questions asked in the narrow approach are:-

 

            i)          Is it a violation of the Collective Agreement (CA)?

 

            ii)         Is it a violation of the labour law?

 

            iii)        Is it a violation of the past practice, custom or company rules?  Or

 

            iv)        Is it an area of management responsibility?

 

            The arguments here are that:-

 

            i)          A grievance is genuine only if there has been some alleged violation of           for example, the collective agreement, Labour law, past practice, company rules etc.

 

            ii)         It is assumed that the only rights possessed by an employee are those            specifically spelt out in the contract of employment law

 

            Another approach used in grievance administration is the broad or clinical approach.  According to Cole G A (2006:591), “in this approach, emphasis is getting the root cause of the employee’s dissatisfaction, it is the duty of management to make every effort to find out what is bothering the employee”.  Numerous problem situations are bound to arise that were not foreseen at the time the organisation and trade unions signed the collective agreement.

 

            Grievances usually arise when employees fail to get satisfaction from the job. These may be small complaints but may grow to bigger issues if they are neglected or ignored.  Some grievances arise from real and legitimate causes while others may be imaginary or trivial.

 

            Some of the causes of grievances according to Sison P S (1983:140) are as identified below:-

 

            (i)         Application and interpretation of the collective agreement

 

            (ii)        Absence of clear-cut company policy

 

            (iii)       Poor supervisory abilities

 

            (iv)       Poor channels of communication

 

            (v)        Personal problems

 

            (vi)       Union inspired grievances

 

            (vii)      Improper selection and placement

 

            (viii)     Lack of training trade union officials

 

            (ix)       Discrimination and favouratism

 

            (x)        A test of union struggle against management

 

            There are a number of problems resulting from poor grievance management.  As shown above, there are union inspired grievances.  These are due to power struggle within the union circles, other members may feel not represented adequately hence the divisions.  In the Times of Zambia dated 15th May 2001, it was reported that “Secondary Teachers Union of Zambia appealed to its member’s country wide to report for work on Monday and ignore people insisting a strike.  It was alleged that the package, the union did not get the mandate from its members”.

 

            Poor channels of communication also result in grievances in that any misinformation can lead to disaster and derail grievance handling.  In other cases it has been observed that “where collective agreement exists in an organisation, grievances occur as a result of interpretation, application and administration of its clauses and provisions” (Cole G A: 2006).  However, what is of paramount importance is for both the employees (union) and management to be knowledgeable of the collective agreement to minimize grievances.

 

1.1       STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

 

This can be evidenced from the current increase in      reduced work performance of and Industry/Organisation, continued strikes, go slows, poor conditions of services and demonstrations.

 

           Numbers of organisation have set up grievance machinery at their working places and Trade union movements have being working hand in hand with their respective institutions.

 

            Despite the number of efforts in resolving grievances, the problem still continues.  Therefore, the researcher aims to assess the grievance policy, strategies and practices of the role of grievance management in enhancing work performance.

 

1.2       FORMULATION OF THE HYPOTHESIS

 

            The hypothesis was that effective grievance management facilitates enhanced work performance.

 

1.3       IDENTIFICATION OF VARIABLES

 

            Independent variable            -           Grievance management

            Dependant variable              -           Work performance

 

 

 

 

1.4       OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

 

i)          To determine the role of grievance management in enhancing work performance

 

ii)         To identify causes of grievances in an organisation

 

iii)        To examine the effect of grievances on work performance

 

iv)        To evaluate grievance management system used by the organisation in enhancing work performance

 

1.5       SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

 

i)          The research is a contribution to developing new knowledge in the discipline of grievance management

 

ii)         The research will facilitate policy and strategic development to Human Resource Managers and organisations in grievance management

 

iii)        The research is in partial fulfilment of the requirement to obtain a certificate in Human Resource Management at Mulungushi University

 

 

 1.6       RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

 

            1.6.1   POPULATION OF THE STUDY

 

            The study covered a population of management members of Non Ferrous Copper Africa Mining Plc (NFC) of Chambishi, Human Resource personnel, union officials and workers.

 

1.6.2   SAMPLE SIZE

 

            The total sample size of thirty-five (35) respondents was used in the study which comprised of the following:-

  

            Management members                                  03

            Human Resource Managers                           02

            Union officials                                                 05

            Workers (Employees)                                       25

            Total                                                               35

 

1.6.3   SAMPLING METHOD

 

            i)          Purposive sampling was used to select Management     members        at NFC, Chambishi

 

            ii)         Purposive sampling method was used to select Human Resource Managers

 

            iii)        Purposive sampling method was used to select union officials

 

            iv)        Simple random sampling method was used to select workers

                        at NFC

 

1.6.4   DATA COLLECTION

 

            Both Primary and Secondary data will be collected

 

1.6.5   INSTRUMENTS OF DATA COLLECTION

 

            In Primary data, self administered questionnaires were used to collect information from workers (employees).  Interview guide and observation methods were used to collect information from Management members and Human Resource Managers.

  

1.6.6   DATA ANALYSIS

 

            Both qualitative and quantitative methods were used to analyse the collected data.

 

1.6.7   PERIOD OF THE STUDY

 

            The study covered a one month period

 

1.6.8   SCOPE OF THE STUDY

 

            The study covered a period of six years from 2002 to 2008.

 

 

1.7       OPERATION DEFINITION

 

            Enhancing               -           to increase or further improve the good quality,                                                    value or status of fulfilling employee job                                                                 expectation in terms of good work environment,                                        conditions of service, good salaries and grievance                                           management or handling

 

            Grievance                 -           an approach aiming at achieving organisation management                objectives by integrating it with those of individuals

                                                            through fair handling of complaints or                                                                     dissatisfaction made by an employee about                                                         wages, conditions of employment or the action(s)                                                 of management or any discontent or feeling of                                                         injustice in connection with one’s working                                                 environment 

 

 

 

            Performance            -           the rate of output achieved by a worker, how well                                                 the job is done by an employee

 

            Role                           -           a particular function done in an organisation                                                         to achieve the organisation objectives

 

            Work                          -           a set of tasks or responsibilities grouped together

                                                            Under a particular title

 

 

 

 

 

1.8       ABBREVIATIONS

 

            NFC                            -                       Non Ferrous Copper Africa Mining

 

            RA                              -                       Recognition Agreement

 

            ZCTU                         -                       Zambia Congress of Trade Unions

 

            MUZ                            -                       Mine Workers Union of Zambia

 

            NUMAW                    -                       National Union of Miners  and Allied Workers

 

CHAPTER TWO

 

             Perfecto S. Siston (2006:45) defines grievance as ‘’any dissatisfaction, complaint, irritation or misunderstanding that can be real or imaginary of an employee arising from his /her job relationship.

             According to Abraham and Flipper, a grievance is defined as, any       discontent or dissatisfaction that affect the organizational performance. It         can be stated, voiced, unvoiced, written’, oral or ridiculous. A grievance is           distinguished from a complaint   in that a complaint is a discounted      disaffection, which has yet assumed a great measure of importance to the   complainant.

 

            We can deduce from the above therefore that grievance administration is a process of handling grievances in a formalized system or a procedure. Poor grievance administration may affect the performance of employees. A good grievance administration on the other hand will foster performance.

 

            Perfecto S. Siston favors the idea of grievance administration by saying that, “one of the most important aspects of the day to day relations between a company and its employees is the manner in which the grievance is treated”

 

 

2.1       CHARACTERISTICS OF GRIEVANCE

 

            A grievance may take one or more of the following characteristics.

 

v                 It can either be unvoiced or stated by the employee

v                 It can be written or unwritten

v                 It can be valid, legitimate, untrue or ridiculous

 

            It’s important to note that a discontent must arise out of something connected with the company or employment situation.

 

            It’s imperative that the supervisor must be able to identify a grievance and for that matter a genuine grievance.  However, Abraham and Fillipo assert that, “Grievances are handled most satisfactorily if they are not in writing”.

 

2.3       APPROACHES TO GRIEVANCE ADMINISTRATION

 

            Basically there are two approaches to grievance handling.

 

            a)         NARROW / LEGALISTIC APPROACH

 

                        This approach tries to answer the following questions

 

Is it a violation of collective agreement? Is it a violation of legislation? Is it a violation of the past practice, custom or company rules? Is it an area of management responsibility?

 

 

            The arguments in this approach are that:

 

            i)          A grievance is genuine if there has been some alleged violation of       any of the above

 

            ii)         It is assumed that the only rights possessed by an employee are          those   specifically spelt out in the contract of employment.

 

            a)         CLINICAL / BROAD APPROACH

 

                        According to Beach S. Dale (2007:591) “in this approach emphasis            is on getting the root causes of the employee’s        dissatisfaction.  It is              the duty of the management to make every effort to find out           what is            bothering the employee.” Numerous problem situations are bound to         arise that were not foreseen at the time the company and trade union signed the collective agreement.

 

                        If a grievance is not or cannot be tied to some provision in the law or    contract it can be judged according to psychological or sociological            principles with reference to established personnel policies of the            company.

 

2.4       CAUSE OF GRIEVANCES

 

            Grievances usually arise when employees fail to get satisfaction from the job. These may be small complaints but may grow into bigger issues if they are neglected or ignored. Some grievances arise from real and legitimate causes while others may be imaginary or trivial. Siston (2006:34) mentions the following as causes of grievances:

 

           (i)         Application and interpretation of the collective agreement.

           (ii)        Absence of clear-cut company policy

           (iii)       Poor supervisory abilities.

           (iv)       Poor channels of communication.

           (v)        Personal problems

           (vi)       Union inspired grievances

            (vii)      Improper selection and replacements.

           (viii)     Lack of training Trade Union officials.

            (ix)       Discrimination and favoritisms

            (x)        A test of union struggle against management.

 

            Below are some of the causes of grievances in detail.

 

            UNION INSPIRED GRIEVANCES*

 

            These are due to power struggle within the union circles. Other members may feel not represented adequately hence the divisions. In the Times of Zambia dated 15th May, 2001, it was reported that, Secondary School Teachers Union of Zambia (SESTUZ) appealed to its members countrywide to report for work on Monday and ignore people insisting a strike. It was alleged that the package the union did not get the mandated from its members.

            POOR CHANNELS OF COMMUNICATION

           Channels of communication should be clear and straight feedback is especially important. These channels should be short; any misinformation can lead to disaster and derail grievance handling.

 

APPLICATION AND INTERPRETATION OF COLLECTIVE   BARGAINING AGREEMENT

 

            Where collective agreements exist in an organization, grievances occur as a result of the interpretation, application and or administration of its clauses and provisions. However, what is of paramount importance is for both employees (union) and management to be knowledgeable of the collective agreement so as to minimize grievances.

 

            NATURE OF GRIEVANCES

                       

            Siston (2003:140) states that “the psychology is the study of individual’s behaviour and his reactions make us realize that no two persons are the same. People have different physical and mental capabilities, education background, work experiences and all other attributes.

 

            These differences influence attitude and reaction to events. The interpretation and understanding of the company practices and policies also differ. Because of the above, the performance of the individual employee is dependant on these differences so is efficiency.

 

            The psychological element of grievances is dependent on three (3) parties and these are:

 

The employee The union official Management

            HOW TO HANDLE GRIEVANCES

 

            Since all the complaints are legitimate grievances it is important for management or union officials to do the following to establish whether it is justified and genuine to proceed:

 

            a)         Investigate the complaint thoroughly

            b)         Check the facts if they are correct or not

            c)         Determine the source of grievance whether it has violated the   employee’s rights

 

2.5       IMPORTANCE OF GRIEVANCE MACHINERY AND EMPLOYEE          PERFORMACE

 

            The grievance machinery must be put in place to facilitate smooth settlement of grievances.  Peter Ducker (2007:90) once said, “It is better to prevent the fire than to stop it.” This is very important to avoid unnecessary conflicts with the other party.  It is therefore important to note that grievance machinery is:

 

(i)                 A means of enforcing the collective agreement. This should ensure either party i.e. management and trade union obey the contents of the agreement, if this is not observed the conflicts will increase

 

 

            (ii)        A means of communication. It is vital to keep in touch with others.         This is informing of feedback and response towards work.

 

 

            (iii)       The only way in which the grievances can be settled quickly and at                               the lowest levels of the organization. In fact, this is healthy and can                          lead to industrial harmony.

 

It is the only way for orderly handling of grievances.                  Once this machinery is overlooked, then what follows is         disastrous.

 

            (iv)       The fair way of dealing with grievances because it provides for                                     appeal until a settlement is reached.

 

 

2.6     ADMINISTRATION OF GRIEVANCES*

 

            It is still observed that the administration of grievances remains much to be desired. It is rather based on subjective than objective administration. Most of the supervisor’s lack skills in dealing with grievances and aggravate problems and sour the industrial relations

 

            However, Perfecto S. (2003: 421 – 422) suggests that the following is what to consider in handling grievance:

 

            (i)         Accept the responsibility for handling the grievance.

 

            (ii)        Listen to the complaint

 

            (iii)       Show concern and let the employee appreciate his coming to you. Do                         not argue or threaten, this will hinder your investigation.

 

            (iv)       Ask questions to get to the bottom of the problem, identify the                           underlying causes

 

            (v)        Find out who are involved

 

            (vi)       Study or analyze the circumstances surrounding the grievances. Ask               the question why, who, where, when and what?

 

            (vii)      Evaluate whether the grievance is legitimate or not

 

            (viii)     Ask employee to give his side of the story, get all the facts necessary              and eventually see how best you can solve the issue

 

            In this regard supervisors have a crucial task to ensure they try to solve all the grievances amicably. It’s also the obligation of management to facilitate this by training supervisors in managerial skills. This will equip them with skills to administer grievances and be able to settle them at the lowest levels of the organizations. Some supervisors may make judgments that could bring embarrassment to the company. Therefore, any decision should be taken in accordance with the company policy, rules, procedures, or the collective agreement. It should also be in line with the employment act, common law and customary law. Any action out of these parameters may be harmful and detrimental to the organization.

  

2.7       THE ROLE OF MANAGEMENT IN HANDLING GRIEVANCES

 

            Management’s role is to ensure the procedure of settling grievance is clear and adhered to at all cost. Lack of consideration to this will bring discontent

           

            In the working environment.  Among the errors of management encountered in processing grievances are:

 

     (a)       Stopping too soon in the search for the facts

 

            (b)       Expressing a management opinion prior to the time when all pertinent                         facts have been discovered

             (c)        Failing to maintain proper records. Poorly managed records are not                good as management will not have the reference and therefore face                   problems in making decisions

 

            (d)       The tendency to abandon themselves from the employees being the                source of information. This could be through poor attitude and                                supervisory complex

 

            (e)       Settling wrong grievance, a mistake which may produce a new                                     grievance.             Follow-up is the step in the procedure which tells when               a mistake in   handling has been made

 

            On the other hand management can minimize or cut down on grievances and help to improve employee performance. This calls for management to accept certain responsibilities, which may include the following:

 

      (a)       To define clearly the handling procedures in the organization,                            responsibility and authority must be clearly defined among various                                supervisory levels.

 

            (b)       Simple clear cut and concise grievance procedure must be                                           communicated to all levels of personnel. Most important, the                                          supervisor must understand his/her proper role, personnel policies                                   and labour contracts

 

      (c)        Strong responsible and consistent management leadership to handle              personnel problems. Consultation is a very important aspect to                                     consider in arriving at the right judgments

 

Supervisors must know how to                        get employees to accept rules and abide by decisions

 

Placement is cardinal. The new                              employees should be oriented properly and indoctrinated, an                unproductive worker is a liability to the organization.

 

            (g)       Right attitude towards aggrieved party, management should always                 open its office doors to employees with problems

 

            (h)        Fairness in the settlement of grievance is essential and also, appeal               channels to top management should be kept open

 

      (i)         Employee counseling, this is a vital aspect which is rather neglected                by most management, on the job problems can hinder employee     

 

This should be checked and necessary steps should                             be taken immediately.

   

2.8           EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE

 

            Employee performance cannot be isolated from grievance administration. This is because performance is affected regardless of any nature of grievance.  Performance is defined as the ability to carry out and accomplish acceptable standards of work. These standards are set and can be measured against what is achieved.

 

            Mamoka (2007:98) defined performance as the ability to discharge skills, acceptable work or task. It is an action behavior or an outcome that an employee should be able to demonstrate after acquiring knowledge, skills attitude etc, from training.

 

            From the above we can deduce that performance is something we can easily measure and determine.  However, in order to know the impact of performance, it has to be measured.

 

            G.A Cole (2000:98) assets that, performance of an employee on his/her job is judged in terms of three factors and these are:

 

            (i)         The requirement of the job i.e. duties and responsibilities

 

            (ii)        The employee value of his/her employer

 

            (iii)       The objectives of the organization. In case of an organisation

                        Performance of employee leaves much to be desired because they                 feel their efforts are not appreciated by the employer frustrations they                  settle them.