About Grievance policy

This policy covers our grievance policy and procedures for employees and external stakeholders. It sets out the procedure for employees to raise concerns, problems, or complaints relating to their employment, which the organisation is committed to dealing with fairly, consistently, and without unreasonable delay, in line with the ACAS Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures. The policy also sets out procedures for external stakeholders to have their concerns addressed in a timely fashion.

We are committed to supporting and building an inclusive and respectful environment for our employees, any freelancers we work with as well as contractors we engage with from time to time. How we engage with our authors and agents, as well as our customers, suppliers and many other business partners and our local community is equally important to us.

We will always try to maintain a working environment where everyone is treated with dignity and respect and will not accept any form of unlawful discrimination and harassment. All complaints of discrimination or harassment will be respected and dealt with promptly and in confidence provided it is within the law to do so.

This policy applies to all our stakeholders both internally and externally. Specific provisions relating to employees, regardless of length of service, grade or role, are outlined separately to ensure compliance with the law, provide necessary clarity and ensure an effective resolution process is followed. Agency workers, freelancers and contractors should follow the process outlined for “All other stakeholders”, but we may decide to align to the “Employee” process if we deem it appropriate.

The policy can be applied and used in the following circumstances:

• You feel you have been subjected to any form of bullying or harassment in the course of your work or business relationships with us.
• You feel you have been unfavourably treated in contravention of our Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Policy.
• You have witnessed bullying, harassment or any other unacceptable behaviour to any stakeholder by any colleague.
• As an external stakeholder, you have a serious concern or complaint you wish to raise with us.

All genuine complaints raised under this procedure will be treated with respect and the complainant will not be subject to any unfavourable treatment because of making the complaint.

We will:

• Treat all grievances seriously and confidentially.
• Act impartially and investigate matters appropriately.
• Allow employees to be accompanied at formal meetings.
• Protect employees from victimisation for raising a grievance in good faith.

For clarity the procedure is noted separately for employees and all other stakeholders.

To ensure we remain compliant with our policy the following procedures will be followed:

• All grievances will be handled in the strictest confidence, except as required to investigate the matter and reach a resolution.
• Training in handling grievances will be given to all management employees.
• A record outlining all relevant dates, the circumstances of the grievance and the resolution will be retained by HR and kept strictly confidential. Data will be kept in accordance with data protection requirements and retained only for as long as necessary.
• Any grievances not resolved to the satisfaction of all parties will be notified to a member of the Board. Where a grievance is against a member of the Board, a suitable alternative member will be notified.

The processes for our employees and our other stakeholders to raise grievances and have these addressed are explained below.

Employees are encouraged, where appropriate, to address any grievance with their immediate line manager at an early stage. They will try and assist you in finding an informal resolution that all parties accept. If this cannot provide resolution, the complaint is about your own line manager, you deem it to be serious, or if you believe a law has been broken, a formal complaint should be raised.

If informal resolution is not appropriate or has not resolved the issue, the employee should submit a formal grievance in writing. The grievance should include:

• The nature of the complaint.
• Relevant dates, facts, and individuals involved.
• Any steps already taken to resolve the matter.
• The outcome sought (if known).

The grievance should be submitted to the employee’s line manager or to HR. If the grievance relates to that individual, it should be submitted to an alternative manager or to HR.

The organisation will acknowledge receipt of the grievance in writing without unreasonable delay and confirm the next steps. If you receive an “Out of Office” autoreply resend your grievance to the Chief Operating Officer.

An appropriate investigation will be carried out, which may include:

• Reviewing relevant documents.
• Interviewing the employee raising the grievance.
• Speaking with witnesses or others involved.

The scope and length of the investigation will depend on the nature of the grievance but we would aim to complete this within two weeks of the grievance being raised.

Where a grievance names or directly concerns another individual, that person will be informed that a grievance has been raised and will be given a fair opportunity to respond to any allegations made against them. They will be treated with respect throughout the process, kept informed of progress where appropriate, and are equally entitled to raise any concerns about how the process is being conducted with HR.

Once the investigation is complete, the employee will be invited to a formal grievance meeting to discuss the matter. The meeting may take place either in-person or online.

Employees have the right to be accompanied by:

• A work colleague, or
• A trade union representative

The companion may address the meeting and confer with the employee but may not answer questions on their behalf.

• An appropriate manager and/or HR , will be appointed to hear the grievance. This will not be anyone who is the subject of the grievance.
• In order to ensure transparency during the process or as part of the resolution, you will be given regular updates on the processes after the initial meetings.

Following the meeting, the manager responsible for the grievance hearing will confirm the outcome in writing within two weeks of the meeting. Any delay will be advised to you with a revised expected target date. The outcome will include:

• A summary of the grievance
• The decision reached
• Any actions to be taken.

If you are not satisfied with the outcome, you have the right to appeal. You may appeal in writing within five working days, clearly setting out the grounds for your appeal.

By way of example, grounds for appeal might include:

• A significant procedural error occurred during the grievance process
• The outcome was disproportionate given the circumstances
• The decision was unfair or biased in some way
• New evidence has come to light that was not available at the time of the original investigation

This list is not exhaustive, and appeals will be considered on their individual merits.

• The appeal meeting will focus on the grounds outlined in your appeal. Its intent is not to re-hear the case in full or to revisit matters already considered, unless there is a specific reason to do so.
• The appeal will be heard by a manager not previously involved in the case. The employee will have the right to be accompanied at the appeal meeting.
• Prior to communicating the appeal outcome, the process and decision will be reviewed by at least two members of the Executive Board. The outcome of the appeal will be confirmed in writing and is final. The target to complete this is ten working days and any delay will be advised to you. Your statutory rights remain in place.

Where a grievance is raised during a disciplinary, capability, redundancy, or TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment Regulations) process, the organisation will decide whether to:

• Deal with the grievance separately, or
• Address it as part of the ongoing process.

This decision will depend on the nature of the grievance.

Where multiple employees raise the same or similar grievances, the organisation may address them collectively where appropriate.

If the grievance relates to a matter that could constitute a protected disclosure under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998, it may be more appropriate to deal with the concerns under our Whistleblowing procedure. A manager or HR will advise if this is the case.

If you are unable to attend the grievance or appeal hearing because of circumstances beyond your control, you should inform the person conducting the hearing as soon as possible and explain the circumstances. We will reschedule the meeting at least once, but if you fail to attend the rescheduled meeting, the hearing may take place in your absence, based on the relevant documentation available.

Canongate is committed to ensuring that no employee who raises a grievance in good faith suffers any detriment, victimisation, or reprisal as a result, whether or not the grievance is upheld. Where a grievance relates to discrimination, harassment, or a protected disclosure, you will also benefit from statutory protection against victimisation and detriment under the Equality Act 2010 and/or the Employment Rights Act 1996, as applicable. If you believe you have suffered a detriment for raising a grievance please raise this immediately with HR, and any substantiated act of victimisation will be treated as a disciplinary matter.

In the first instance, lodge a formal grievance by email to info@canongate.co.uk and title the email “GRIEVANCE”.

If, for any reason, you are not comfortable outlining the full details of your grievance to this email address, please send a short email instead requesting the name of a suitable, alternative contact.

The grievance will be acknowledged within three business days.

The Office Manager / PA to Chief Operating Officer manages this email inbox and will send all emails entitled “Grievance” to the Head of HR, who will determine the relevant senior manager to deal with the complaint.

The grievance will be reviewed by the relevant departments to determine its grounds for review within five business days.

We will accept and investigate a grievance where it meets the following criteria:

• Scope – The grievance relates to Canongate’s conduct, decisions, or actions (or those of a Canongate employee acting on the company’s behalf) in its dealings with you, for example, in relation to a contract, commission, publishing agreement, or supplier relationship.
• Sufficient detail – The grievance sets out, as far as reasonably possible: what happened, when it happened, who was involved, and what outcome you are seeking.
• Timeliness – The grievance is raised within 3 months of the event or issue arising, or of you becoming aware of it. If you believe there is just cause to consider the grievance outside of this timeframe, please state your reason for this and Canongate will consider this in its decision-making.
• Not duplicative or already resolved – The matter is not already subject to legal proceedings, arbitration, or another formal dispute resolution process, and has not already been resolved under this or another Canongate policy.
• Genuine and specific – The grievance is a genuine complaint about a specific matter, rather than a general expression of differing opinion, and is not made in bad faith or with intent to harass.

We may decline to accept a grievance that does not meet the above, but will normally tell you why and give you the opportunity to redress. Another option may be to point you to a more appropriate route to resolve the matter, where an appropriate other channel exists.

If found to be valid, an impartial investigation will be conducted. The investigation may require further follow up with the originator of the grievance.

During the process or as part of the resolution you will be:

• Advised of the reasons for accepting or rejecting the grievance.
• Given regular updates on the process being undertaken.
• Advised in writing of the reason for the resolution, whether it upholds the original grievance or not.

A written resolution will be provided within ten business days whenever possible.

Any external stakeholder may appeal the outcome within ten business days of receiving the resolution notice. An alternative, relevant person will review the case and a final decision advised within fifteen business days.

Canongate is committed to ensuring that anyone who raises a grievance in good faith continues to be treated fairly, with no adverse effect on their working relationship with Canongate, regardless of the outcome. If you believe you have experienced any form of detriment for raising a grievance, please contact info@canongate.co.uk marked “For the attention of HR”, so we can investigate.