Complaint management in the workplace refers to the process of addressing and resolving complaints raised by employees. It is an essential aspect of maintaining a healthy work environment, promoting employee satisfaction, and ensuring fair treatment within an organization. Effective complaint management systems provide employees with a platform to voice their concerns and seek resolution for issues they face in the workplace.
This type of management system can be used for both unionized and non-unionized organizations. Within a non-unionized organization, a complaint is raised as a spoken, or written dissatisfaction brought to the attention of a supervisor or HR representative. Whereas in a unionized organization, a grievance is a complaint or violation of the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) that is formally presented to a union official who will file it on the employee’s behalf. Sodales for Enterprise Health, Safety and Employee Relations, provides organizations with the ability to report and manage both types, on a digital platform, by integrating multiple internal processes into a single platform. For the purpose of this blog, we’ll be looking specifically at complaint management.
Discover how Sodales revolutionizes complaint management, empowering organizations to automate processes, uphold government regulations, and ensure an anonymous and secure environment for employees to report workplace grievances.
Why reporting complaints is important.
It’s important for organizations to have a well-defined complaint management process in place to address and resolve complaints effectively, to ensuring a fair and respectful work environment for all employees. Types of complaints that organizations often face in the workplace include, harassment (verbal, physical, emotional), sexual harassment, racial discrimination, religious discrimination, and more. It is important for the employee experiencing any type of harassment or discrimination to report the details of their experience or have someone report on their behalf. According to a McKinsey survey, 35% of female respondents have experienced sexual harassment in the workplace, and this does not account for a large percentage of other employees that face this same harassment but do not report it; either because they do not have the means to report it or cannot do so confidentially. This is why it is important to report any form of workplace harassment or discrimination faced, as there may be other employees who have reported similar offences. With Sodales’ module, complaints can be thoroughly documented and tracked to identify any patterns within the workplace, to ensure that proper action is taken to prevent any type of complaint from reoccurring.
How Sodales can help.
Sodales’ complaint management software is an effective way to organize and manage various complaints, allowing employees and employers to properly and effectively organize and respond to complaints in a timely manner; provide a single resource for accessing policies and procedures; manage complaint steps from date of complaint submission through to the resolution; generate responses; upload relevant documents, and more. With Sodales, organizations can establish a clear and cohesive step-by-step process to follow when filing a complaint. Employees should feel comfortable when filing something of any magnitude, and Sodales takes confidentiality very seriously, which is why the system allows employees to privately report against other employees or management (where applicable) and can control who this report is sent to within upper management. This allows the employee to feel confident to share information and feel that their privacy is being respected. Once the complaint is submitted, based on the preconfigured workflow, the system will notify the next person responsible for managing this complaint, and an unbiased investigator will be assigned to complete an investigation.
With Sodales’ investigation tool that is embedded within the complaint management system, the investigator will be able to interview parties, submit their notes, upload supporting documents, and more. An investigation report can then be created by the investigator which will then help determine who the party at fault is, and what actions are to be taken following this investigation; sometimes this includes mediation or arbitration of the matter. Following any investigation, organizations can take the insights gained to identify systemic issues and make improvements to prevent similar instances from reoccurring. With Sodales, organizations can configure an investigation process that complies with all country-specific laws and regulations related to discrimination, harassment, and employee rights. Workplace investigations management is important to maintain a safe, respectful, and compliant work environment.
Improve workplace culture.
Sodales’ complaint management module is the key to improving employee retention. By giving employees a greater voice and creating a safe work environment, it boosts overall satisfaction. This module offers a streamlined and secure way for employees to communicate their complaints to employers. By prioritizing the employee experience, it ensures that complaints are taken seriously and addressed promptly. This fosters an environment of respect and inclusivity, promoting diversity and equity. Celebrate and embrace employees from diverse backgrounds, orientations, ages, abilities, and beliefs for a truly fair and welcoming workplace.
Get started with a demo.
With documentation and analysis capabilities, organizations can regularly review their complaint management system, and policies and procedures, to identify areas for improvement. When complaints, and investigations are conducted properly, organizations can better resolve conflicts, prevent legal issues, and foster a workplace culture of accountability and fairness. This will help to build trust with stakeholders and can lead to improved operational efficiency.
To learn more about Sodales’ complaints, and investigations software, book your free demo here, and you’ll experience how Sodales will help make your organization’s health, safety and employee relations processes safer, efficient and more transparent.
