Collective Disputes Policy and Procedure

  1. Policy statement

The guidelines indicated in this document are designed to deal with collective grievances/disputes and to ensure they are handled fairly and effectively. Ongoing or unresolved disputes are undesirable and against the interests of all concerned. This Policy and Procedure adheres to the requirements of the Employment Act 2009 and the Employment Tribunal (Constitution and Rules of Procedure) (Amendment) Regulations 2009.

Grievances are concerns, problems or complaints that individual employees raise with their employer (see Managing Grievances Policy and Procedure).

Collective grievances/disputes are brought by a group of staff, e.g. changes made to a procedure or practice or breaches of existing agreements. The list is not prescriptive.

  1. Scope

This Policy and Procedure applies to all staff employed at Teesside University.

  1. Aims

3.1Before the formal sections of the Procedure are invoked, every effort will be made

by the parties concerned to resolve matters informally.

3.2At each stage, methods of mediation, conciliation and arbitration should be

considered.

3.3In the event of a national dispute, local Trade Union representatives are expected

to keep management informed and explore ways with management of avoiding disruption to students, directly or indirectly.

3.4It is important that managers ensure staff not involved, but with close working

relationships with those who are, be kept informed of any practical implications.

3.5In the event of a dispute, management is expected to maintain the status quowhilst the individual stages are followed. This will mean that any working practices

and management arrangements which applied before the dispute should not be changed, nor should there be any form of industrial action taken either by the staff involved or by any other group of staff in support until procedures have been exhausted.

  1. Procedure

4.1Stage 1 – Grievances/Disputes at School/Department Level

If a group of staff feel they have a collective grievance/dispute with management in a particular School or Department, every effort should be made to resolve it by discussion between the Dean/Director (for members of staff who have brought the dispute, if not represented by a Trade Union Representative), representatives of those Trade Unions recognised by Teesside University and a Human Resources Representative. Normally this process should take no longer than 14 working days.

4.2Stage 2

4.2.1If the collective grievance/dispute is not resolved to the satisfaction of the

parties concerned, and they wish to take it further, then they must put their issue in writing to the Deputy Director of Human Resources. The written submission must cover the following points:

i)The specific cause of the collective grievance/dispute.

ii)The outcome of Stage 1.

A meeting will be arranged within 10 working days with the staff

representative(s), Trade Union representative(s), an independent

Human Resources Manager and an independent Dean/Director to

discuss the Stage 1 outcome and what can be done to settle the dispute.

An offer of mediation will be made at this stage.

4.2.2A written recommendation will be provided to all those who have been

Involved in the dispute within 10 working days by the independent Dean/

Director. If an extension to this timescale is required, this must be communicated to all parties and a realistic timescale identified.

4.3Stage 3

4.3.1If the written recommendation is not accepted by all concerned then the

Executive Director of Human Resources should be notified in writing and he/she will, along with a member of the VCE, consider the facts and any new information that may impact on the recommendations made. This meeting will take place no longer than 10 working days after being notified the complaint remains unresolved and the decision will be notified to the parties involved and their representatives within 5 working days.

4.3.2If the outcome is not accepted by the parties in dispute, and has University

wide implications, it may be possible to move to Stage 4 (University Level Dispute).

  1. Disputes at University Level

5.1When a collective dispute arises which affects more than one School and

Department, every effort should be made to resolve it through discussions between the Executive Director of Human Resources and representatives of the recognised Trade Unions.

5.2A mutually acceptable timescale should be agreed to attempt to resolve the dispute.

If at the exhaustion of this period the dispute is not resolved, or if a meeting of the University Joint Negotiating Committee reaches deadlock, there will be a meeting with the People and Organisational Development Committee (with Governor only members) and the representatives of the appropriate Trade Unions. The outcome of this meeting will be provided to the Trade Unions, Vice-Chancellor, and Executive Director of Human Resources in writing within 5 working days following the meeting. This is the final stage of the procedure.

  1. Conciliation

It is hoped that all disputes will be resolved by implementation of the procedure outlined above. However, there may be some disputes for which resolution cannot be achieved. If the dispute cannot be resolved by this procedure, each side should consider reference of the dispute to the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS)*. Both sides must agree to this final stage

  1. Glossary of terms

*ACAS is a statutory independent body set up to provide conciliation and mediation as a means of avoiding and resolving disputes between employers and employees; to make facilities available for arbitration and to provide advisory services on industrial relations and related matters.

  1. Approval

This Policy and Procedure was approved by the People and Organisational Development Committee on 3 March 2017.

  1. Monitoring

Human Resources will monitor any disputes via a casework log to enable statistical data to be provided on an annual basis.

  1. ‘Review by’ date

This document will be reviewed in March 2022.

Review may occur earlier due to legislative and/or professional standards changes.

Review may occur earlier of legislative and/or professional standards change.

  1. Related Documents

List of any other related policies, procedures and/or documents, with associated web links.

Managing Grievances Policy and Procedure

Grievance Policy and Procedure relating to Conduct of the Vice-Chancellor’s Executive

Document Control
Title:
Collective Disputes Policy and Procedure
Applicable to:
All Staff (except casual staff)
Date of Issue:
29 July 2015
Procedure Owner:
e.g. Human Resources

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