Commecs College has devised grievances settlement policy to promote the internal settlement of any controversy or claim pertaining to employment actions, which may arise between salaried employees and management. It is intended to provide an equitable and timely method for the final disposition of such issues.

Definition:

“Grievance” is defined as an employee’s expression of alleged unfair or inequitable treatment with respect to the application of policies, procedures, and regulations, which he/she has been unable to resolve with his/her immediate supervisor.

Examples of staff grievances include failure to receive eligible vacation, holidays, or other compensation as specifically mentioned in relevant sub sections. Judgments such as salary increases, salary range, or classification assignments to jobs are not considered violations of management manual. These types of complaints should be handled through established procedures.

Procedure:

An employee filing a grievance shall have at every “step” the right to present witnesses and evidence to support his/her grievance. Since the processing of a grievance is not a legal matter attorneys may not represent either the employee filing a grievance or the Organization. Employees will not to be penalized in any way for proper use of the Grievance Procedure. Time spent in grievance discussions with the administration would be considered time worked with pay.

For all employees other than Principal:

Step 1: Any employee who wishes to file a grievance shall first discuss his/her grievance with his/ her HOD. After the aforementioned discussion with the employee, the HOD shall have 2 working days in which to reply to the employee’s grievance. If the HOD fails to reply to the grievance or if his/her answer is not satisfactory to the employee, the employee may present his/her grievance at Step 2.

Step 2: If the disposition of the grievance in Step 1 is not acceptable, the employee shall, within 2 working days, prepare a written statement stating the basis for the grievance and a requested settlement. He/she shall then discuss his/her problem with Principal who shall have 3 working days in which to present a written reply to the employee’s complaint. If a mutually acceptable settlement cannot be reached, the employee will have 2 working days in which to present his/her grievance in Step 3. The grievant should process his/ her grievance to Step 3 through the Principal.

Step 3: If the disposition of the grievance in Step 2 is not acceptable, the employee shall, within 2 working days, prepare a written statement stating the basis for the grievance and a requested settlement. He/she shall then discuss his/her problem with Executive Director CET who shall have 5 working days in which to present a written reply to the employee’s complaint. If a mutually acceptable settlement cannot be reached, the employee will have 2 working days in which to present his/her grievance in Step 4. The grievant should process his/her grievance to Step 4 through the Executive Director CET.

Step 4: If the disposition of the grievance in Step 3 is not acceptable and the employee wishes to have the grievance considered further, he/she shall notify a representative appointed by Chairman CET. The incumbent representative will investigate the allegations and make arrangements to hear the employee’s complaint and the departmental charges if any. He/she shall provide a written response to the employee within 7 working days of the receipt of the grievance. If the response is not acceptable to the employee the grievance may be processed to Step 5 through Chairman CET.

Step 5 If the disposition of the grievance in Step 4 is not acceptable to the employee and he/she wishes to have the grievance given further consideration, he/she shall notify the Chairman CET in writing to that effect. It is up to the discretion of the Chairman CET to either investigate the allegation on his/her own or constitute a panel to hear out the grievant.   Grievance processed to Step 4 shall be reviewed and a response shall be provided to the grievant within 15 days.

For Principal:

In exceptional cases where the principal reporting directly to the ED – CET, wishes to file a grievance shall first discuss his grievance with the ED – CET if ED – CET fails to reply to the grievance or if his answer is not satisfactory to the Principal then the Principal may present his grievance to the board member nominated by the ED – CET. Grievances processed under such circumstances shall be reviewed and a response shall be provided within 15 days.