Agenda and draft minutes

Apologies for absence are noted above.

Members of the Employment Panel are asked whether they have an interest in any of the matters on the agenda and, if so, to formally declare that interest.

There were no declarations of interest made at the meeting.

The minutes of the meeting held on 12 September 2024 are attached for approval and accuracy.

It was agreed that the notes of the meeting held on 12 September 2024 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

Report and appendices attached.

Sam McVaigh, Director of People and Inclusion explained that the Council’s Grievance Procedure was revised by Employment Panel in June of this year. As with any new policy its initial period of operation provides an opportunity to identify areas for clarification and improvement. Furthermore, in October of this year, a new duty to take reasonable steps to prevent the sexual harassment of workers came into force and there is a need to strengthen the Grievance Procedure to address this.   

Policy Headlines

Key changes to the policy from the version agreed previously include:  

§  A clearer delineation between standard ‘grievances’ and ‘dignity at work’ related matters (including sexual harassment) and clarity on expectations and processes around how these matters will be addressed. 

§  Removal of the requirement for a formal ‘hearing’ stage in keeping with best practice in the management of grievances and legal and ACAS guidance. – A more straightforward and less adversarial process is set out which retains the key formal elements and same right of appeal 

§  Clarity on the expectations and arrangements for communication with the parties a grievance is raised against (where relevant) 

§  Clarity that the policy can apply to both individual and collective grievances

§  Clarity on the expectations and arrangements in relation to note taking.  

It was explained that the internal timelines when dealing with appeals was being reviewed in relation to whether they could be dealt with more swiftly within a politically led organisation.

Members of the Panel were given the opportunity to ask questions and make comments and the following points were raised:-

·         Councillor Moss referred to where the procedure cannot be used and asked why there was a cut off of over three months?

Simon explained that this was about moving forward, dealing with the issue promptly, forming a mutual resolution and not letting bad feelings fester. 

·         Councillor Lancaster asked how may grievances were received each year and how learning was shared from them.

Sam explained that compared to other organisations the number received was small and that this was consistent year on year.

With regards to learning from grievances it was explained that case reviews were carried out and any specific issues highlighted would be shared within debriefs and sharing lessons learned. It was reported that a better dashboard of learning was being developed. It was also explained that the SLT receive updates and information relating to themed trends.

·         Councillor Walsh referred to the 3 month time frame and explained that she felt this was too short a period of time.

Sam explained that a pragmatic approach would be taken with all grievances but that the three month time limit was consistent with other council policies.

·         Councillor Tariq explained that this wasn’t just about having a policy but about making sure that the policy was effective and making a difference. Councillor Tariq asked whether the policy has the trust and confidence of the workforce, whether the workforce are aware of the policy and how they progress a grievance should  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

There was no urgent business.