Letter of Grievance

What is a grievance letter in the UK?

A formal grievance letter is an official notice created by an employee to report a complaint about a specific matter at the workplace or other issues related to the employment. This is a standard type of a letter used by employees across the UK to notify their line managers or immediate supervisors about ongoing issues.

This grievance letter template can be used to address to the line manager various types of complaints at the workplace, including safety concerns, promotions, salary increases, internal discipline, etc.

When should you raise a formal grievance?

A grievance letter template can be used by full-time employees, part-time employees, zero-hours employees, or fixed-term employees to report the following:

• violation of internal disciplinary rules;
• bullying or harassment;
• discrimination;
• unsafe working conditions;
• issues with unpaid wages;
• denied leaves, including maternity, annual paid leave, etc.

This template for a grievance letter can only be used to raise a concern related to employment relations. This letter cannot be used, however, to report concerns under a services contract or contract for works.

What should a UK grievance letter include?

A standard letter of grievance template includes a set of important elements, including:

Employee Details

A grievance letter template UK shall outline the employee’s full name, job title and contact email or phone number. Usually a grievance letter cannot be sent anonymously.

According to ACAS’s recent guidelines, the complaint should be filed individually, which excludes the possibility of filing a collective grievance complaint.

Scope of Complaint

A formal grievance letter template can be used to report single or multiple incidents. To improve internal investigation and tracking, the solid letter template must include:

• date of the incident;
• incident’s description; and
• people involved, including other employees or staff.

If there is an internal company procedure governing the grievance at the workplace, it is always recommended to include a clear reference to it.

Additional Information

This grievance template letter allows you to include any other additional information that might be suitable for your particular case. For example, you can attach a list of any supporting documents that can be helpful in reviewing the application.

It is also possible to invite an employee’s representative to any further meetings related to the grievance. These representatives may include a trade union member, a solicitor, supervisors or other staff.

Date & Signature

Once the letter of grievance template is ready, it should be signed and dated by the employee. The process of the submission of the grievance complaint depends on the company’s procedure. If there is a specific policy in place, the employee must follow its rules for the submission.

However, if there is no effective policy, in such a case an employee can submit this complaint to their immediate supervisor, head of HR or the company’s director.

What are the benefits of this letter of grievance sample?

This letter sample offers the following benefits and advantages:

• a letter that is fully compliant with ACAS guidelines and the Employment Rights Act 1996;
• a letter drafted in a professional language;
• a letter that is suitable for different employment types;
• a letter that can be used in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

How to customise this grievance template letter​ with FasterDraft?

To get a fully customisable letter template, follow a few easy steps below:

1. Click the “Create Document” button.
2. Answer simple questions in the form.
3. Select a template’s format – a grievance template letter PDF or Word.
4. E-sign the letter online (optional).
5. Make a payment.

The grievance letter template UK is ready for instant download immediately after the purchase.