new finai project

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A PROJECT ON

GRIEVANCE HANDLING

PROCEDURES IN RANBAXY

SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENT OF MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

DISTANCE ECDUATION

GURU JAMBHESHWAR UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY,

HISAR

RESEARCH SUPERVISOR SUBMITTED BY

DR. SABA JAFRI ANUPAMA PRIYADARSHNI JK BUSINESS SCHOOL ENROLMENT NO.08061144204 SPECIALIZATION- HR

SESSION 2008 -10

DIRECTORATE OF DISTANCE EDUCATION

GURU JAMBHESHWAR UNIVERSITY OF

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY, HISAR

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DECLARATION

‘I hereby declare that I did the Project “Griveance handling procedure in Ranbaxy” taking the information corrects in my knowledge under the guidance of Asst. Prof. Saba Jafri.’ I am thoughtful to Dr. Reena Ramachandran for giving me this opportunity to carry out this Study Project.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT A single person alone can never be credited for performing any extraordinary work successfully. It is only possible with the continuous and constant help and guidance that he receives from others and team members. Through this acknowledgement I wish to convey my deepest regards and gratitude towards those who helped me to work on this project succesfully and present it to you all. I am grateful to Dr. R.K Bharadwaj and Dr. Timira Shukla for providing me with an opportunity to work on this prject and also for their valuable guidance and support. I am deeply indebted to my guide and mentor Prof. Saba zafri, for her valuable guidance, constant encouragement and constructive feedback she provided, in the absence of which it would not have been possible to complete the project. I would also like to thank Mr. Varinder Singh and Mr. Surinder Bhandari for providing me a helping hand and also for enhancing my knowledge in different ways. I am also indebted towards Mr. Ankit Gupta for extending his valuable support in carrying out this dissertation work. I am thankful to the employees of Ranbaxy,as without their co-operation and support this outcome would not have been possible.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Chapters Particulars Page No.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 7

1 1(a) INTRODUCTION 1(b) COMPANY PROFILE

9 10

2 2(a) LITERATURE REVIEW 2(b) LANDMARK STUDIES

32

3 OBJECTIVES 39

4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 40

5 INTERPRETATION OF RESULTS AND FINDINGS

43

6 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION 70

7 7(a) RECOMMENDATIONS 7(b) LIMITATIONS

73 74

8 BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES 75

ANNEXURE 76

LIST OF FLOWCHARTS

S. NO

PARTICULARS PAGE NO

1 WHY GRIEVANCES ARISE 15 2 STEP LADDER POLICY 21

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LIST OF TABLES

S.NO. PARTICULARS PAGE NO.

1 Satisfaction level with the grievance handling procedure Cross tabulation

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2 Chi-square test 44 3 Satisfaction level with the grievance handling

Procedure 45

4 Satisfaction level with the grievance handling Procedure

46

5 Suggestions from employees are taken into Consideration

48

6 Response of hr department towards the grievance 50 7 Grievance details should be documented 52 8 Immediate supervisor should be more trained in

handling the grievance 53

9 Satisfaction level with the lighting arrangement 55 10 Canteen facility satisfaction level 56 11 Satisfaction level with the working hours 57 12 Satisfaction level with the medical facility in the

Organization 59

13 Satisfaction level with the payment of salary Procedure

60

14 rating to the training procedure in the organization 62 15 Satisfaction with the leave granting system 63 16 Satisfaction with the performance based cash reward

and bonus 65

17 Performance appraisal system in the organization is Unbiased

67

s

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LIST OF GRAPHS

S.NO. PARTICULARS 1 Satisfaction level with the grievance handling

Procedure 45

2 Need for improvement in grievance handling Procedure

47

3 Suggestions from employees are taken into Consideration

49

4 Response of hr department towards the grievance 51

5 Grievance details should be documented 52 6 Immediate supervisor should be more trained in

handling the grievance 53

7 Satisfaction level with the lighting arrangement 55

8 Canteen facility satisfaction level 56 9 Satisfaction level with the working hours 57 10 Satisfaction level with the medical facility in the

Organization 59

11 Satisfaction level with the payment of salary Procedure

61

12 rating to the training procedure in the organization 62

13 Satisfaction with the leave granting system 64 14 Satisfaction with the performance based cash reward

and bonus 66

15 Performance appraisal system in the organisation is Unbiased

68

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The maintenance of quality work-life is the biggest challenge for any organisation today.The failure to meet the standards would generate grievances among the employees and would have a bearing upon the harmonious relationship in the workplace. Broadly, a grievance can be defined as any discontent of dissatisfaction with any aspect of the organization. It can be real or imaginary, legitimate or ridiculous, rated or unvoiced, written or oral, it must however, find expression in some form or the other A grievance is any alleged violation of the contract, past practice, employer rules, previous grievance or arbitration settlements, or violation of any such law.An employer is under an obligation to state in the terms and conditions of employment, the details of the person concerned to whom any employee who has a grievance may approach. A grievance procedure is more than just a means of managing conflict.The proper understanding and use of this procedure may strengthen the relationship between the workers and the management. A grievance procedure throws light on the fact that how a particular grievance would be dealt and also strives to settle it as fairly and quickly as possible. Grievance handling plays a major role in determining the quality of the environment at the workplace.Genarally a grievance is being resolved by the immediate supervisor,however,in case of failure of this approach what process would be adopted. Every organisation strives to establish an excellent working environment.This would further facilitate increased employee morale and a better performance and thus help an organisation to achieve its goals.The grievances of the employees may act as a hindrance in achieving these goals. Managers should be aware of the crucial role of grievance process in resolving workplace grievances .Effective grievance handling is an essential part of cultivating good employee relations and running a fair, successful, and productive workplace. Grievance handling procedure in Ranbaxy is my topic of research. In this I am going to discuss about the various aspects related with the grievances of the employees ,their satisfaction level with the grievance handling procedure being followed by the company ,The satisfaction level towards the working arrangement ,practices and methods used to solve grievance in the company ,etc.

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CHAPTER 1

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INTRODUCTION: According to the International Labour Organization (ILO) a grievance is: “A complaint of one or more workers with respect to wages and allowances, conditions of work and interpretation of service stipulation, covering such areas as overtime, leave, transfer, promotions, seniority, job assignment and termination of service.” Every employee contributes his level best in the performance of an organisation and in return has certain expectations from the organisation he is working for.The failure of fulfillment of an employee’s expectations give birth to discontent and dissatisfaction.This discontent or dissatisfaction is known as grievance. The workplace grievances may arise because of a number of factors like work rule or regulation,policy or procedure,contract,health and safety regulation,interpersonal relationships,unfair treatment,wage,bonus,changing the cultural norms unilaterally etc. Maintaining quality of work life for its employees is an important concern for the any organisation. The grievance handling procedure of the organisation can affect the harmonious environment of the organization It is beneficial to resolve these grievances,before it is too late.In this respect the role of the management can not be ignored.The management should make an effort to understand the problems and issues of the employees and resolve them amicably.This would also help in building a culture of high performance.Managers need to be educated about the importance of the grievance process and their role in maintaining favourable relations with the union. The need to resolve these grievances cannot be ignored upon.Effective grievance handling is a crucial aspect of cultivating good employee relations and running a fair,successful and productive workplace.It should be kept in mind that relationship building is key to successful labour relations. The organisations should make an effort to establish such an environment that may lead to an increased employee morale and performance which may further contribute to the productivity of the organisation. Employee grievances are one of the important factors that act as a barrier in establishing appropriate working environment. They should keep in mind that any unfair treatment could create unnecessary employee grievances issue, create unrest, and may cost the company its future. The management should act empathetically toward the employees. In order to resolve a grievance or dispute effectively it is necessary to listen carefully to the points being raised by the employee and to analyse them properly.

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Proper grievance procedures must be laid down to address to the complaints being registered by the employees.These procedures can be both formal or informal in nature. Whatever form they may take, grievance procedures are intended to allow companies to hear and resolve complaints in a timely and cost effective manner, before they result in litigation. Knowing that formal procedures are available often encourages employees to raise concerns or question company policies before major problems develop. It also tends to makes managers less likely to ignore problems, because they know that upper management may become involved through the grievance process. To make the grievance procedure work, management and the union have to approach it with the attitude that it serves the mutual interests of management, employees, and the union. COMPANY PROFILE Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited, India's largest pharmaceutical company, is an integrated, research based, international pharmaceutical company, producing a wide range of quality, affordable generic medicines, trusted by healthcare professionals and patients across geographies. Ranked 8th amongst the global generic pharmaceutical companies, Ranbaxy today has a presence in 23 of the top 25 pharmaceutical markets of the world. The Company has a global footprint in 48 countries, world-class manufacturing facilities in 10 countries and serves customers in over 125 countries. In June 2008, Ranbaxy entered into an alliance with one of the largest Japanese innovator companies, Daiichi Sankyo Company Ltd., to create an innovator and generic pharmaceutical powerhouse. The combined entity now ranks among the top 15 pharmaceutical companies, globally. The transformational deal will place Ranbaxy in a higher growth trajectory and it will emerge stronger in terms of its global reach and in its capabilities in drug development and manufacturing Vision & Aspirations Ranbaxy is driven by its vision to achieve significant business in proprietary prescription products by 2012 with a strong presence in developed markets. The Company aspires to be amongst the Top 5 global generic players and aims at achieving global sales of US $5 Bn by 2012. People The Company’s business philosophy based on delivering value to its stakeholders constantly inspires its people to innovate, achieve excellence and set new global benchmarks. Driven by the passion of its over 12,000 strong multicultural workforce comprising 50 nationalities, Ranbaxy continues to aggressively pursue its mission to become a Research-based International Pharmaceutical Company and attain a true global leadership position.

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BRIEF INTRODUCTION OF THE RANBAXY PLANT IN PUNJAB: In the chemical division, various bulk drugs are manufactured. The chemical division has three units in Punjab. One is located in Toansa ,two are located at Mohali and one unit is located at Dewas (MP),where ciprofloxacin is manufactured.In the plant of chemical division ,various drugs like antibiotics,anti-malarial,anti-bacterial and anti ulcer is manufactured. Two plants at Mohali are generally known as Mohali-I and Mohali-II.The Mohali-I plant started functioning in 1974,Toansa plant started functioning in 1987.The Mohali-II plant started functioning in 1991 and Dewas in 1991.Various plant heads independently manage all these plants.In each unit, separate facilities with respect to the manufacture of drugs,along with their manufacturing areas have been provided. This is required to reduce the chance of any cross contamination under the drugs laws and to comply with goods manufacturing practices. Mohali-I Mohali-I plant is an old plant and most of the drugs were first introduced here for commercial production, before shifting them to other locations with better facilities from FDA point of view. This plant is so designed that the title modification of different drugs can be manufactured. The plant basically deals mostly with the manufacturing of ACTIVE PHARMACEUTICAL INGREDIENTS(API).This plant is divided into plant areas A10 AND A11. Mohali-II At Mohali-11 plants, separate blocks have been divided for the preparation of each drug.The Toansa ,Mohali-II and Dewas plants are planned in such a way that their system,facilities,manufacturing practices and standards meet the requirements of FDA MILESTONES FOR RANBAXY: �The company was incorporated in the year 1961. �In 1973,Ranbaxy entered into its first joint venture in Lagos(Nigeria). �A modern plant for dosage form was established in Dewas(MP) in 1983. �The research foundation of Ranbaxy was established in 1985. �In 1992,company entered into an agreement with Eli Lilly and Co. of USA for

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setting up a join venture in India to market select Lilly products. �The new research center at Gurgaon became fully operational in 1994. �In 1997,Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited crossed a sales turnover of Rs. 10000 million, with its exports reaching an all time high of Rs. 5000 million. �In 1998, Ranbaxy entered USA,world’s largest pharmaceutical market,with products under its own name. �In 2000,Ranbaxy acquired Bayer’s generics business(trading under the name of basics ) in Germany. �Ranbaxy received the Economic Times Award for corporate excellence for the company of the year 2002-2003 in 2003. �Ranbaxy opened its third state of the art R&D facility in Gurgaon campus to focus on NCE discovery research.H.E. Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam,the former president of India,inaugurated the facility in aug 2005. �Ranbaxy launched operations in Canada.

LIFE AT RANBAXY: A career at Ranbaxy means an opportunity for ample learning & growth. It offers avenues to work across the globe along side the finest minds. The Company offers a challenging assignment, a world class working environment, professional management, competitive salaries, stock options along with exceptional rewards. Opportunities The global spread of Ranbaxy and the blazing growth in business provides ample opportunities for our employees to build careers in various fields. Opportunities have never been a constraint for the deserving. It believes in employee growth that goes beyond vertical movements and change in designations. Potential and performance are the pillars of career progression at Ranbaxy. A robust development process supports this. The managers will generally have the opportunity to live and work in different countries; such international experience will help them better understand our complex business and grow both personally and professionally. Salary and Benefits Salaries and other benefits in Ranbaxy are comparable with the best in the industry and one can expect to be rewarded highly if the performance is consistently outstanding. Group Life Insurance, Medical Insurance and Pension plans

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CHAPTER 2

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2(a) LITERATURE REVIEW: A grievance includes any discontent and dissatisfaction experienced by an employee.It may affect the employee performance in a number of ways. Grievance procedures are a means of dispute resolution that can be used by a company to address complaints by employees, suppliers, customers, and/or competitors. The revolt of English barons in the early thirteenth century which led to the Magna Carta of 1215 was partly motivated by grievances against abuses by King John.This right to petition the king, for grievances, was affirmed in the bill of rights 1689. The United States declaration for independence.is mainly an enumeration of the colonists' grievances against King George III.The right "to petition the Government for a redress of grievances" is recognized in the first amendment to the United States government. As ‘grievance’ is an abstract term, defining it distinctly is therefore rather difficult.Different authors have defined the word grievance in various ways. For example, Davis defines it as “any real or imagined feeling of personal injustice which an employee has concerning his employment relationship. On the other hand, Yoder and Staudohar have defined grievance as a written complaint filed by an employee and claiming unfair treatment. In the view of Jucius the term “grievance” means “ any discontent or dissatisfaction, whether expressed or not and whether valid or not, arising out of anything connected with the company that an employee thinks, believes or even feel, is unfair, unjust or inequitable” The grievances of the employees are related to the contract, work rule or regulation, policy or procedure, health and safety regulation, past practice, changing the cultural norms unilaterally, individual victimization, wage, bonus, etc. Grievance procedures are a means of dispute resolution that can be used to address complaints by employees against management or to settle disputes between a company and its suppliers, customers, or competitors. Since the evolution of this term,a number of researches have been conducted to map the impact of grievances on various factors in the workplace.Grievances should be solved in the lateral stages,as and when they arise before they take some major form and also to order to avoid any severe condition that may take place. Some researches have also proved that grievance procedures do not necessarily have to be so formal and elaborate, and in fact, overly formal grievance procedures often discourage the airing of disputes in a timely manner. Though some of the studies have also proved that at times employees hesitate to come up with their grievances as they feel it would act against them or they often view these grievance handling mechanism as biased towards the employer.

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Definitions: According to the National Commission of Labour: “ Complaints affecting one or more individual workers in respect of their wage payments, overtime, leave, transfer, promotion, seniority, work assignment and discharge would constitute grievance.Where the points at dispute are of general applicability or of considerable magnitude,they will fall outside the scope of this procedure.” According to Dale Yoder: “a written complaint filed by an employee and claiming unfair treatment” The employees have certain expectations form the management in terms of their service,working environment,salaries,fair treatment,satisfaction of their variety of needs.It is natural for an employee to feel aggrieved in case his expectations are not being fulfilled and this will further lead to generation of employee grievance. WHY GRIEVANCES ARISE ?

FLOWCHART 1

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THE NATURE AND CAUSES OF GRIEVANCE: The management along with the union of the respective enterprise lays down a layout regarding the components that will constitute a grievance in the given organizational context. In an organization a grievance may be reported by an employee or group employees, with respect to any measure or a situation that directly affects the individual or is likely to affect, the conditions of employment of many workers. When the organisation fails to resolve individual grievances of the employees,and the same situation affects other workers also,it may become a collective grievance.Collective grievance normally come under the purview of collective bargaining. In general the nature of grievance falls under the given categories in most Indian organisations,however it may vary from organisation to organisation:- I. PROMOTIONS

• SUPERSESSION

• ACTING PROMOTION

• SENIORITY

• PAY FIXATION

II. COMPENSATION

• INCREMENTS

• PAYMENT

• RECOVERY OF DUES III. AMENITIES

• INEQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION

• ENTITLEMENT

• MEDICAL BENEFITS

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IV. SERVICE MATTERS

• TRANSFERS

• CONTINUITY OF SERVICE

• SUPERANNUATION

V. DISCIPLINARY ACTION

• PUNISHMENT

• FINE

• VICTIMISATION

VI. NATURE OF JOB

• JOB ALLOCATION

VII. CONDITION OF WORK

• SAFETY

• HAZARDS

VIII. LEAVE The above mentioned causes can be taken into consideration in order to decide whether a particular grievance can be formally taken up for redressal or not and then preventive as well corrective measures should be taken care of.

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THE LEGAL FRAMEWORK : In the year 1982,the Industrial Disputes Act ,1947 was amended to include Chapter IIB, Section 9C,concerning the reference of certain individual disputes to grievance settlement authorities as following:

• The employer of any industrial establishment in which fifty or more workers

are employed or have been employed on any day in the preceding twelve months,shall provide for,in accordance with the rules made in that behalf under this act,a grievance settlement authority for the settlement of industrial disputes connected with an individual worker employed in the establishment.

• Where an industrial dispute,connected with an individual worker,arises in an establishment ,the worker or a trade union of workers of which the worker is a member may refer,in a manner as may be prescribed,the disputes to the grievance settlement authority provided for by the employer.

• The grievance settlement authority,shall follow such procedure and complete its proceedings within the period as prescribed.

• No reference shall be made under chapter III with respect to any dispute referred to in this section unless such dispute has been referred to the grievance setllement authority is not acceptable to any of the parties to the disp

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Grievances may have a bearing upon the performance of the employees.The employees may share their feeling of dissatisfaction and can express it in verbal or written form.As long as this feeling of dissatisfaction prevails,an employee’s performance may be adversely affected. It may also be possible that a particular discontent may take place due to inadequate or distorted information or at times also on imaginery grounds.At this particular moment the management should take some initiative to do away with this feeling of dissatisfaction or discontent.Doing so would ensure higher level of commitment on the part of the employees and may also lead to better performance. An employee may a number of ways to express his discontent at the workplace.Absenteeism,acts of indiscipline,loitering,restriction in output,an aggressive reaction of hostility or even violence etc may be used by an employee. In formal organisations,employee grievances have a restrictive connotation,particularly in view of the need to develop a formal mechanism for grievance redressal.Usually distinction is made between a complaint and a grievance in an organizational context. A discontent is termed as a complain when it has not assumed a measure of importance to the complainant and is voiced in a highly informal manner.A complaint turns into a grievance when the employee feels that injustice has been done to him,It is formally expressed either in verbal or in written form and is related to the policies,procedures and practices of the organisation.

GUIDELINES FOR GRIEVANCE HANDLING: The best thing that can be done to handle grievance is to develop such a work environment where grievances do not occur.Causes of potential employee dissatisfaction such as unfair appraisals,inequitable wages etc. should be recognized and corrected,before they become grievances.The following Do’s and Don’t’s can be implemented for doing so: DO’S: 1) Investigate and handle each case as though it may eventually result in arbitration. 2) Have a word with the person having the grievance. 3) Comply with the time limits for sorting out the matter. 4) Visit the work area of grievance. 5) Visit the work area of grievance. 6) Examine the grievant’s personnel records. 7) Fully examine prior grievance records. 8)Fully inform your own supervisor of grievance matters.

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DON’T’S: 1) Hold back the remedy if the company is wrong. 2) Relinquish to the union your rights as a manager. 3) Deny grievance stllement because your hands have been tied down by the management. 4)Agree to informal amendments in the court. THE GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE: Most of the organisations follow a formal grievance procedure,the advantages of having such a procedure is as follows: 1)It provides established and known methods of processing grievances and keeps this channel of communication open. 2)The redressal of a grievance is attempted by collecting the facts and evidence,asking questions related to the grievance,analyzing facts and data generated and then taking decision on impartial basis. 3)The process covers several levels in the organisation including reference to outside institutions or individuals,if so desired and provided in the contract. 4)Its existence provides confidence among the employees that they can be heard and their grievance can be impartially redressed. 5)Even if a grievance is not solved in the favour of the employee,he may still feel satisfied because he had the opportunity to communicate and to be heard by the management. 6)Involvement of the middle and senior management in the redressal procedure provides with a safeguard against the possible arbitrary or biased decision of the immediate supervisor. 7)Various levels in the organisations get to know the kinds of issues that concern workers and managers. All the employees of the Corporation fall under the broad purview of the grievance redressal system. The grievance procedures differ from organization to organization. 1. Open door policy 2. Step-ladder policy Open door policy: Under this policy, the aggrieved employee is free to meet the top executives of the organization and get his grievances redressed. Such a policy works well only in small organizations.However, in bigger organizations, top management executives are usually busy with other concerned matters of the company. Moreover, it is believed that open door policy is suitable for executives; operational employees may feel shy to go to top management.

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Step ladder policy: Under this policy, the aggrieved employee has to follow a step by step procedure for getting his grievance redressed. In this procedure, whenever an employee is confronted with a grievance, he presents his problem to his immediate supervisor. If the employee is not satisfied wit STEP LADDER POLICY

FLOWCHART 2 ALTERNATIVE APPROACH TO HANDLING GRIEVANCE: The feeling of discontent among the employees requires immediate attention of the management.The managerial approach of dealing with employee’s grievances can be stated as follows: Immediacy of action:- The grievance of employees must be recognized and solved immediately.The first line supervisors must be trained to handle grievances in an effective manner.If the grievance is settled immediately,the possible effect of it on the performance of the employees can be minimized. Acceptance of grievance:- A grievance when expressed must be taken as a genuine feeling of an employee.Acceptance sends across a message depicting the willingness of the supervisor to look into the matter.

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Problem Identification:- The complaint made by an aggrieved employee usually has emotional overtones and may therefore be a vague exaggerated statement of the problem.The supervisor needs to listen to the complain carefully and help in identifying the real problems. Getting the facts:- It is necessary for the supervisor to collect relevant and adequate facts relating to the nature of the grievance.A record of these facts should maintained and utilized when needed. Causal analysis of the grievance:- An effort should be made to identify the real causes, after ascertaining the facts,leading to the grievance.A deeper analysis of the entire matter is required. Taking decisions:- The impact of various causes on the nature of grievance needs to be evaluated with a view to generating alternative courses of action and an appropriate decision needs to be taken. Implementation and follow-up:-The respective decisoion whether favourable or unfavourable to the employee concerned,must be immediately communicated and implemented and should also be followed-up. CONSTITUTION OF GRIEVANCE COMMITTEE: 1) In the case of recognized union the committee should consist of two representatives of management plus a union representative and the union departmental representative of the department in which the workers concerned work. 2) In the case of non-recognized union or absence of union but there is a works committee the committee should be formed with two representatives of management plus the representatives of the department of the workers concerned on the works committee plus either the secretary or vice-president of the works committee(this is in case the secretary of the works committee is also the workers’ departmental representative). MODEL GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE: 1) GRIEVANCE MACHINERY: Grievance machinery should be set up in every enterprise in order to carry the grievance procedure.The basic function of this machinery would be to make an effort and ensure that the grievance procedure is in conformity with the guiding principles. The workers need to select their representatives in order to constitute a fresh grievance machinery that would function for a minimum period of one year.The list of the thus elected candidates should be forwarded to the management.In case the union enjoys such a position that it can submit an agreed list of names there is no need for recourse to elections.

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Where the works committees are functioning satisfactorily,since the work committee members of a particular constituency shall act as the departmental representatives.The management shall designate the persons for each department who shall be approached at the first stage and the department heads for handling grievances at the second stage. Two or three of the departmental representatives of workers and two or three departmental heads nominated by the management shall constitute a grievance committee.In case of appeals against discharges or dismissals,the management shall designate the authority to whom appeals can be made. 2) GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE: The grievance procedure generally is in the following manner,apart from some adaptations in case of railway,plantations,defense undertaking and also small undertakings employing few workers: (a) An aggrieved employee shall first present the grievance verbally to the officer designated by the management for this purpose.An answer needs to be given within 48 hours of the presentation of the complaint. (b) If the worker is not satisfied with the decision this officer or fails to receive an answer within the stipulated period,he shall either in person or accompanied by his departmental representative,present his grievances to the head of the department designated by the management for the purpose of resolving grievances.The department head shall give his answer within three days of the presentation of grievance.If action cannot be taken within that period,the reason for delay should be recorded. (c) If this decision is unsatisfactory the aggrieved worker may request to forward his grievance to the grievance committee,which shall make its recommendations to the manager within seven days of the workers’ request.If the time period exceeds,the reason should be recorded.In case of difference between the opinion between the members of the committee,the views of the members along with the relevant papers shall be placed before the managers for the final decision.The final decision shall be communicated o the concerned worker within three days from the receipt of the grievance committee’s recommendations. (d) in case the decision made by the management is unsatisfactory or exceeds the stipulated time period,the worker shall have the right to appeal to the managemen for a revision.In making this appeal,the worker,shall have the right to take a union official alon with him to facilitate discussions with the management.Management may communicate their decision within a week of the worker’s revision petition. (e) If no agreement is still possible,the union and the management may refer the grievance to voluntary arbitration within a week of receipt by the workers of the management’s decision. (f)Where a worker has taken up a grievance for redressal under this procedure,the formal conciliation machinery shall not intervene till all steps in the procedure are

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exhausted.A grievance shall be presumed to ssume the form of a dispute only when the final decision of the top management in respect of the grievance is not acceptable to the worker. (g) If a grievance arises out of an order given by the management,the order shall be complied with before the worker concerned invokes the procedure laid down for redressal of grievance.If,however,there is a time lag between the issue of order or its compliance, the grievance procedure may immediately be invoked but the order nevertheless must be complied within the due date,even if all the steps in the grievance procedure have not been exhausted.It may,however,be advisable for the management to await the findings of grievance procedure machinery. (h) Workers’ representatives on the grievance committee shall have the right of access to any document connected with the inquiry maintained in the department and which may be necessary to understand the merit or otherwise of the workers’ grievances.However,the management’s representaives shall have the right to refuse to show any document or give any information which they consider to be of a confidential nature.Such confidential documents shall not be used against the workers in the course of the grievance proceedings. (i) There shall be a limit within which the appeal shall be taken from one step to the other.For this purpose,the aggrieved worker shall ,within 72 hours of the receipt of the decision at one stage,file his appeal with the authority at the next higher stage,should he feel inclined to appeal. (j) In calculating the various time intervals under the above clauses,holidays shall not be reckoned. (k)The management should provide the necessary clerical and other assistance for the smooth functioning of the grievance machinery. (l) If it is necessary for any worker to leave the department during working hours on call from the labour/personnel officer or any other officer of the established grievance machinery,prior permission from the supervisor shall be taken.If an employee faces such a situation he shall not suffer any loss in wages for the work time lost in this manner. (m) If there is any complaint against any individual member of the staff,who is nominated by the management to handle grievance at the lowest level,the worker may take his grievance to the next highest level,i.e. at the level of department head. (n) In this case of any grievance arising out of discharge or dismissal of a worker,the above mentioned procedure shall not apply.Instead the discharged worker shall have the right to appeal either to the dismissing authority or to a senior authority who shall be specified by the management,within a week from the date of discharge.At the time the appeal is heard,the worker may,if he desires,be accompanied by either an official

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INVESTIGATING A GRIEVANCE: In order to handle a grievance in a proper manner,it is important to look into the root cause that has given birth to it.So,effective grievance handling requires investigating as well as advocacy skills.One key aspect in the investigation is to determine what is the breach of the employee’s right. Once the occurrence of the breach is known,the next step is to document the five W’s.The se five W’s are the following: 1.Who were involved? 2. When did the breach occur? 3. Why did the breach occur? 4. Where did the breach occur? 5. What happened? It is generally agreed upon,that no action will be taken on any breach until the full grievance procedure is utilized,giving the person whose right has been breached,full opportunity to ventilate concerns.Grievance handling requires skills of advocacy and can said to be semi-judicial in nature. The grievance handler should try to set time limits for the resolution of grievances, should ensure that the person to make the decision on the grievance is competent to decide and free of bias, and should develop a menu of solutions- a variety of options to decide on the outcome. BROAD FUCTIONS OF THE GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE: In addition to the practical roles played by the grievance procedure, there are several broader, more theoretical functions that may be fulfilled by the actual presence of the process: Constitutional Function: A constitutional or recognition function is derived by the grievance process, particularly at the industry-wide level but also at the plant level, since the disputes procedure is the means by which both parties accept the other’s legitimacy and by which they can interact Legislative Function: The process serves a legislative or rule-making purpose because it provides a mechanism for employees to legitimately influence and participate in the decisions made by management and therefore provides them with a potential part of the ‘legislative’ function of the firm. Executive Function: An executive or administrative role is served by the grievance process as it can be used to clarify or expand on management decisions by raising

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issues which create uncertainty and, in this capacity, the procedure ‘amplifies’ the executive function. Due Process Function: Because the grievance procedure fulfills a ‘due process’ function by which progressively higher levels of authorities review the appeals of employees and the decisions of lower level managers, a judicial role is served by the process. Power Distribution Function: By specifying what can and cannot be done in the course of the grievance process, the procedure may provide one side or the other a tactical advantage and therefore the grievance process can serve a power distribution function Communications Function: The presence of a functional grievance procedure fulfills a communications function since it can help management become aware of problems in the workplace and, conversely, can also assist in the dissemination of management policy. Voice’ Function: The grievance procedure provides the means by which employees can express their dissatisfaction with working conditions or managerial action and therefore exercise their ‘voice’ option. FEATURES OF GRIEVANCE: �It is the discontent and dissatisfaction with some aspect related with the organisation. �The origin of grievance should be due to workplace related factors,rather than personal issues. �The reasons for such grievances can be both real or imaginery. When the employee feels that injustice has been done to him, he has a grievance. The reasons for such a feeling may be valid or invalid, legitimate or irrational, justifiable or ridiculous. �The discontent may be voiced or unvoiced. But it must find expression in some form. Initially, the employee may complain orally or in writing. If this not looked into promptly, the employee feels a sense of lack of justice. Now the discontent grows and takes the shape of a grievance. �A grievance is traceable to perceived non-fulfillment of one’s expectations from the organisation

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FORMS OF GRIEVANCE : The forms of a grievance are as follows:- 1) FACTUAL: Such grievances take place due to unfulfilled legitimate needs. e.g., wage hike has been agreed but not implemented citing various reasons. 2) IMAGINERY: In this form the cause behind an employees dissatisfaction is because of a wrong perception,wrong attitude and wrong information and there is no

valid reason behind it. 3) DISGUISED: An employee may have dissatisfaction for reasons that are unknown to himself. If he is under pressure from family, friends, relatives, neighbours, he may reach the work spot with a heavy heart. If a new recruit gets a new table and almirah this may become an eyesore to other employees who have not been treated likewise previously. EFFECTS OF GRIEVANCES: Grievances, if they are not identified and redressed, may affect adversely the workers, managers and the organisation. The effects are:

1) On production include:

• Inferior quality of production. • Lower productivity. • Increase in the wastage of material, spoilage/leakage of machinery. • Increase in the cost of production per unit. • 2) On the employees:

• Increased rate of absenteeism and turnover. • Lower performance. • Reduces the level of commitment, sincerity and punctuality. • Increases the incidence of accidents. • Reduces the level of employee morale.

3) On the managers:

• Strains the superior-subordinate relations. • Increases the degree of supervision, control and follow up. • Increase in unrest and thereby machinery to maintain industrial peace.

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OBJECTIVES OF A GRIEVANCE HANDLING PROCEDURE: Jackson (2000) lays down the objectives of a grievance handling procedure as follows:

• To enable the employee to air his/her grievance. • To clarify the nature of the grievance. • To investigate the reasons for dissatisfaction. • To obtain, where possible, a speedy resolution to the problem. • To take appropriate actions and ensure that promises are kept.

To inform the employee of his or her right to take the grievance to the next stage of the procedure, in the event of an unsuccessful resolution THE BENEFITS OF A GRIEVANCE HANDLING PROCEDURE: According to Jackson (2000), further benefits that will accrue to both the employer and employees are as follows:

• It encourages employees to raise concerns without fear of reprisal. • It provides a fair and speedy means of dealing with complaints. • It prevents minor disagreements developing into more serious disputes. • It saves employers time and money as solutions are found for workplace

problems. • It helps to build an organisational climate based on openness and trust.

THE DISCOVERY OF GRIEVANCES: Grievances can be unraveled in a number of ways. Gossip and grapevine offer vital clues about employee grievances. Ripe boxes, open door policies periodic interviews, exit surveys could also be undertaken to uncover the mystery surrounding grievances. These methods are discussed below: 1) Observation:Observation is one of the main methods to discover grievances in the workplace. A manager / supervisor can usually track the behaviours of people working under him. If a particular employee is not getting along with people, showing indifference to commands, reporting late for work or is remaining absent - the signals are fairly obvious. Since the supervisor is close to the scene of action, he can always find out such unusual behaviours and report promptly. 2) Grievance procedure: A systematic grievance procedure is best means to find out employee dissatisfaction at various levels. Management, to this end, must encourage employees to use it whenever they have anything to say. In the absence of such a

29

procedure, grievances pile up and burst up in violent forms at a future date. By that time things might have taken an ugly shape altogether, impairing cordial relations between labour and management. If management fails to induce employees to express their grievances, unions will take over and emerge as powerful bargaining representatives. 3) Gripe boxes: A gripe box may be kept at prominent locations in the factory for lodging anonymous complaints pertaining to any aspect relating to work. Since the complaint need not reveal his identity, he can express his feelings of injustice or discontent frankly and without any fear of victimisation. 4) Open door policy:This is a kind of walk-in-meeting with the manager when the employee can express his feelings openly about any work-related grievance. The manager can cross-check the details of the complaint through various means at his disposal. 5) Exit interview: Employees usually leave their current jobs due to dissatisfaction or better prospects outside. If the manager tries sincerely through an exit interview, he might be able to find out the real reasons why ‘X’ is leaving the organisation. To elicit valuable information, the manager must encourage the employee to give a correct picture so as to rectify the mistakes promptly. If the employee is not providing fearless answers, he may given a questionaire to fill up and post the same after getting all his dues cleared from the organisation where he is currently employed. 6) Opinion surveys: Surveys may be conducted periodically to elicit the opinions of employees about the organisation and its policies. KEY FEATURES OF A GOOD GRIEVANCE HANDLING PROCEDURE: Torrington & Hall refer to four key features of a grievance handling procedure, which are discussed below. (a) Fairness:Fairness is needed not only to be just but also to keep the procedure viable, if employees develop the belief that the procedure is only a sham, then its value will be lost, and other means sought to deal with the grievances. This also involves following the principles of natural justice, as in the case of a disciplinary procedure. b) Facilities for representation: Representation, e.g., by a shop steward, can be of help to the individual employee who lacks the confidence or experience to take on the management single-handedly. However, there is also the risk that the presence of the representative produces a defensive management attitude, affected by a number of other issues on which the manager and shop steward may be at loggerheads.

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c) Procedural steps: Steps should be limited to three. There is no value in having more just because there are more levels in the management hierarchy. This will only lengthen the time taken to deal with matter and will soon bring the procedure into disrepute. d) Promptness: Promptness is needed to avoid the bitterness and frustration that can come from delay. When an employee ‘goes into procedure,’ it is like pulling the communication cord in the train. The action is not taken lightly and it is in anticipation of a swift resolution. Furthermore, the manager whose decision is being questioned will have a difficult time until the matter is settled. ESSENTIAL PRE-REQUISITES OF A GOOD GRIEVANCE HANDLING PROCEDURE: Every organisation should have a systematic grievance procedure in order to redress the grievances effectively. As explained above, unattended grievances may culminate in the form of violent conflicts later on. The grievance procedure, to be sound and effective should possess certain pre-requisites: a) Conformity with statutory provisions: Due consideration must be given to the prevailing legislation while designing the grievance handling procedure. b) Unambiguity: Every aspect of the grievance handling procedure should be clear and unambiguous. All employees should know whom to approach first when they have a grievance, whether the complaint should be written or oral, the maximum time in which the redressal is assured, etc. The redressing official should also know the limits within which he can take the required action. c) Simplicity: The grievance handling procedure should be simple and short. If the procedure is complicated it may discourage employees and they may fail to make use of it in a proper manner. d) Promptness: The grievance of the employee should be promptly handled and necessary action must be taken immediately. This is good for both the employee and management, because if the wrong doer is punished late, it may affect the morale of other employees as well. e) Training: The supervisors and the union representatives should be properly trained in all aspects of grievance handling before hand or else it will complicate the problem. f) Follow up: The Personnel Department should keep track of the effectiveness and

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the functioning of grievance handling procedure and make necessary changes to improve it from time to time. HR RELATED SKILL : Listening and questioning skills :A volunteer manager will benefit from some expertise in listening and questioning to get the most out of any interview situation. Feedback should concentrate on observed behaviour rather that perceived attitudes and challenge the impact of the behaviour rather than the behaviour itself e.g ‘ your behaviour made me feel threatened’ rather than ‘you threatened me’. The interview :The way in which the grievance is handled is vital if both parties are going to feel satisfied at the outcomes. What is satisfactory depends as much on how you reach a solution as upon the solution itself. Be aware of the importance of nonverbal as well as verbal signals. 1. Set an agenda – welcome the grievance and agree an agenda for the interview. 2. Clarification – this is the stage at which you try and get agreement as to exactly what happened: ii) start with what the volunteer thinks happened, then you state end on a note of appreciation. end on a note of appreciation After the interview 1. Record the facts you have collected and the decision/agreement reached. 2. Implement the decisions or agreements as soon as possible. 3. Follow-up the action to make sure the problem has been resolved. 4. Evaluate the process – what went well, how will you do it differently next time METHODS ALREADY BEING FOLLOWED IN RANBAXY TO SOLVE GRIEVANCES 1) In case of any grievance the immediate supervisor is informed about the grievance. 2) The supervisor does his best to solve the problem. 3) In case the supervisor fails to settle down any grievance the human resources department comes into action. 4) The grievance Is solved amicably. 5) Also employees’ union has been formed in ranbaxy . 6) The best way ranbaxy thinks to keep away from grievances of employees is to keep the employees engaged . 7) So , they have adventure , sports , and cultural activities being held for employees as part of the fun at work concept.

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2(b) LANDMARK STUDIES: Working environment and performance of an individual are inter-linked.A healthy work environment does play a major role in enhancing the performance of an individual.Whereas in case of poor working environment it becomes very difficult to maintain a productive and satisfying work-life and as a result has a negative effect on the overall performance. R.Ganapathi and M. Balaji Prasad conducted a similar research to find out the effect of working environment on performance of the executives. For the purpose they took a sample size of 200 executives.The data was collected with the help of an inventory.The inventory contained questions relating to the levels of satisfaction of the respondent on factors such as room temperature,size of workplace adequacy of lighting,furniture comfortability,storage security,personalized space etc. The progress of an organisation to a very large extent depends on its workforce.Organisations are facing a number of problems in managing their human resource.So,it is important to take due care of them,as any small grievance if remain unsolved can take a major form and later tend to be harmful for the organisation. Physical factors can contribute strongly to the individual’s well-being and stress on the job promotes poor lifestyle.The authors examined climatic variables and their effect on job satisfaction,affective commitment and intent to leave from both an organisation and business-unit perspective. The study yielded the result that The satisfaction levels differs among people in different hierarchial position.Top-level executives are more satisfied as compared to their lower counterparts.Among the various other factors that are contributing to the better and effective performance of the human resources,the working environment plays a major role. Providing the employees with a better work environment will result in increased job satisfaction that would in turn contribute significantly towards improved performance and efficiency of the human resources. Bernadine Van Gramberg and Jane Menzies studied the reasons behind the failure of grievance procedure in organisations in Australia.Grievance procedure are a compulsory component of awards,individual and collective agreements. These procedures have become important since the decentralization of industrial relations emphasized upon decision making at the workplace rather than in tribunals.Many organisations still lack to handle grievances on their own.This research study was conducted to find out specific reasons for the failure of grievance procedure. Grievance procedures are basically meant to resolve grievances that arise in the workplace.It involves unions,employees and management at an enterprise

33

level.Changes to the industrial relations legislation has changed the whole scenario in which grievances were being handled,allowing organisations more freedom to solve employee grievance on their own or through some mediator. These procedures also allow the employees to come with their complaints without any fear and retribution and serves as a method of communication between the management and the employees. Through this study it was being found that the key reasons behind the failure of the grievance procedures are the design of the procedure,the problems associated with their workability and effectiveness..The employees should also be motivated to make use of the grievance handling procedures. Many employees perceive such procedures to be biased towards the management.The procedure should have a balance between the range of alternative steps for the grievants as well as time taken to ensure fair outcome. Bohlander’s research on grievance processing found the average maximum processing time to be 40 days and grievances generally needed to be initiated within two weeks of the occurrence. Similarly, Loewenberg suggested a four step model commencing with the lodgement of a complaint which must be discussed within five days following which a resolution (recommended by the supervisor) must occur within two days. That time frame of seven days would constitute the first step. The second step would allow for the employee or union representative to appeal within five days in writing to the next level manager (who, in turn must provide a decision within five days). Again, the employee would have the ability to appeal the decision within 10 days. The third step would require senior management to render a decision within 10 days and again, an appeal period is provided (15 days). The final step in the process would be an arbitration meeting (with a private arbitrator) to be held within 15 days Mr. Dan D. Setsetse did a study on strengthening human resources:grievance management challenge.The main objective of his study was to identify the number of grievance cases reported from various departments in north-west province,to look for the main causes of grievance and to identify cases of grievance according to the gender of the employees. According to Mr. Dan,it is still not clear that upto what extent the employees are actually making use of the grievance procedures with respect to various departments in the north-west province.There is still a knowledge gap regarding reported case of grievance,whether both male and female report their grievances or not.So the basic aim of this study was to gain some insight into this matter and also fill in this knowledge gap.

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This study focuses on the step review system.Step review system is the most predominant system.The role of this system is to process the grievance through progressive steps form lower to higher level management.It is one of the most significant system of resolving employee-management grievance. Through this study it was being found that retirement and selection,salary problems,performance assessment,unfair treatment,disciplinary matters,underminig of authority are some of the main causes of grievances in the workplace.It was also evident female employees grievances were more closely related to the working conditions. Caroline Rees did a study on grievance mechanism for business and human rights and to identify the strengths and weaknesses of these mechanisms and the gaps they leave uncovered..Individuals, workers and communities whose human rights are negatively impacted by corporate operations are becoming ever more vocal and successful in demanding that their grievances be addressed. Though there can be a number of reasons that may restrain the use of various grievance mechanism like the eligibility of parties, the scale or gravity of admissible grievances, limits on information and awareness, and questions of trust or confidence.This study also said that proper guidance should be given to the companies in order to help them design effective grievance mechanism to safeguard the rights of their internal stakeholders. Lawrence Nurse and Dwayne Devonish did a study to map the perception of the workers regarding the justice of outcomes that they derive from the use of grievance procedures in their respective organisations.They also assessed the role played by grievance management in delivering just outcomes in the organisations. The result of this study focuses on the experience of the workers or their perceived procedural justice as a matter of the use of grievance mechanism.Also to find out what effect does the demographic characteristics of the workers haveon their perception about the grievance management. One of the important provisions of collective agreements is the grievance procedure. It has historically been regarded as both an institutional mechanism and a process for managing workplace grievance arising out of the contract between employer and employee. The use of grievance procedures has become institutionalised in union/management relations. This study determines whether workers in this tropical island-state believe that grievance systems promote justice at work. The research is motivated by the notion that justice matters, to employees and employers alike. Interest in this subject is linked to a concern about fair employee treatment and the creation and maintenance of fair working environments. Research on organizational justice is important in light of the fact that many

35

opportunities exist for managers to make decisions that result in injustice – the abrupt closure of a section leading, from the standpoint of employees, to unanticipated redundancy; capricious or whimsical dismissal of an employee; payment of a higher salary to a male employee with less experience and qualifications than a female who consistently performs much better; a refusal to promote or otherwise reward employees for consistently superior contributions while rewarding others out of favouritism. This study is particularly based on the responses of 660 employees, representing a 66 percent response rate. The sample includes organizations that are non-union as well as unionized, thereby allowing for comparisons between perceptions in unionised and non-unionised work environments. The result stated that the complaints that respondents raised with management included concerns about poor working conditions, workers’ attitudes, heavy work load and insufficient remuneration, and in that order of magnitude. This study found that with the exception of educational background, demographic characteristics made no significant difference to workers’ perceptions of procedural justice afforded by grievance procedures It was also found that much work still needs to be done in both the union and nonunion sectors to improve the procedural environment for the management and disposition of complaints and grievances. The potential contribution that grievance procedures can make to organizational justice can only be maximised if managers and trade-union leaders pay attention to the effectiveness of the governance structures that they employ for dealing with workplace grievances and to the quality of the outcomes that derive from their usage. Harry Matlay did a study on the relationship of employee with respect to small businesses.The relations were studied making use of factors such as decision making process,grievance handling procedure,management style and its impact of employee relations,recritment,training and human resources development strategies etc. This study involved an exploratory telephone survey of 6,000 organisations randomly selected from the Yellow Pages Business Database of Great Britain. The telephone survey achieved a response rate of 89 per cent. Second, a sub-sample of 600 small businesses was selected from the wider quantitative sample and the owner/managers as well as some of their employees were interviewed once every year for the duration of the study. These face-to-face interviews were designed to identify and analyse attitudinal, organisational and interrelational factors that affected industrial relations in these firms. It was being found that to handle work-related complaints or grievances, the majority of owner/managers in the research sample claimed to resort to informal discussions or meetings. These could take place during normal working hours, at lunchtime or after work. The venue for grievance procedures could include workplace settings, pubs,

36

clubs or the home of either the owner/manager or the employee. Most often, however, the setting for this type of discussion or meeting was deliberately chosen by the owner/manager to include surroundings that were familiar to the respective employee. If more than one individual was part of the process, the owner/manager would usually mediate or impose his/her authority or decision. Group discussions or meetings were relatively rare and when these took place, owner/managers would sometimes decide to “even out the odds” or “call on the moral support” of a senior member of the staff or a trust-worthy employee. The deliberate informality inherent in the majority of these owner/managers’ styles seems to have facilitated a personal approach that, in most cases, resulted in amicable solutions to complex and occasionally acrimonious work-related situations. Furthermore, and despite possible legal repercussions, these respondents also preferred informal dismissal and termination procedures and claimed that they mostly managed to remain on good terms with their former employees. Mixed formal/informal management structures generated differential grievance procedures that varied according to the type and complexity of issues under review. Most grievances involving managerial, clerical or specialist staff were dealt with informally by the owner/manager. A speedy solution was sought, generally by mutual consent, in order to minimise interruptions to work schedules or costly and time consuming staff replacement situations. In contrast, most grievances involving workers were approached more formally and would be dealt with by supervisors or line managers. If this process failed to reach an acceptable solution, assistance was sought and the owner/manager’s decision was final. There were no cases of union or outside arbitration being used in the settlement of workplace grievances in this type of firm. The same formal/informal approach was usually applied to dismissals and terminations. Similar trends were observed in the case of micro-businesses that were managed externally or by agencies. In the year 2004,a workplace employee relations survey was conducted.It basically studied the operation of grievance and disciplinary procedures and to examine whether legislation designed to increase accompaniment within the grievance and disciplinary process has aided the effective resolution of workplace disputes.The right to accompaniment in grievance and disciplinary hearings was introduced in October 2000,in order to improve the effectiveness of grievance and disciplinary procedures in British workplaces. Perhaps the most notable feature of this right was that employees could ask to be accompanied by a trade union representative irrespective of the fact that whether the union was recognised by the employer or not. This particular step would have a bearing upon the grievance and disciplinary process in a number of ways.

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Firstly, it could ensure that vulnerable employees get the support and advice that they need for an effective grievance resolution. From this perspective, workplaces may be constrained from making unduly harsh decisions. Secondly, by providing employee representatives with a statutory procedural role, channels of communication are opened that may help parties to resolve issues without recourse to disciplinary sanctions and dismissals. Thirdly, by compelling workplaces to allow accompaniment at grievance and disciplinary hearings the government hope to close one of the main legal ‘trap-doors’ through which workplaces have traditionally fallen giving rise to costly Employment Tribunal proceedings. The findings produced here provide evidence that specialist HR/personnel managers have also had a significant impact on moderating disciplinary outcomes. This was also enhanced in workplaces in which employee representatives trusted the intentions and actions of managers. Therefore the combined presence of trade union representation and effective HR/personnel management could be expected to have significant benefits.

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CHAPTER 3

39

OBJECTIVES: 1) To study the procedure being followed in Ranbaxy to solve employee grievances. 2) To study the nature of grievances that occur in the organisation. 3) To know whether the grievances were being solved or not.

4) To study the methods and practices used to solve the grievances. 5) To measure the effect of proper grievance handling on the performance of the employees. 6) To measure the satisfaction level of the employees towards the grievance handling methods.

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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY: Research methodology is a way to systematically solve the research problem.It may be understood as a science of studying how research is done scientifically.(Kothari 1998) The research used in this project is descriptive . DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH The major objective of descriptive research is to describe something usually market characteristics or functions .Descriptive research is conducted for the following reasons: 1. To describe the characteristics of relevant groups, such as consumer, salespeople, organizations, market areas etc. 2. To estimate the percentage of units in a specified population exhibiting a certain Behavior 3. To determine the perception of products characteristics. 4. To determine the degree to which marketing variables are associated. 5. To make specific predictions. Descriptive research is preplanned and structured. It is typically based on large representative samples. a formal research design specifies the method for selecting the Sources of information and for collecting data from those sources. A descriptive design requires a clear specification of the who, what, when, where, why, and way of the research. POPULATION AND SAMPLE: For the purpose of study ,the population is the employees of the Ranbaxy(both Mohali-I and Mohali-II) The sample size is 50. DATA COLLECTION METHOD: Survey method was used to collect data. RESEARCH INSTRUMENT: Questionnaire was used.It was both open and close-ended in nature SAMPLING FRAME: List of employees of Ranbaxy.

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SOURCE OF DATA: The data was primary in nature. SAMPLING TECHNIQUE: Simple random sampling is being used in this project. PRIMARY DATA: We collect primary data during the course of doing experiments in an experimental research but in case we do research of the descriptive type and perform surveys , whether sample surveys or census surveys , then we can obtain primary data either through observation or direct communication with the respondents in one form or another or through personal interviews . This, in other words, mean that there are several methods of collecting primary data, particularly in surveys and descriptive researches. Important ones are: � Observation method � Interview method � Questionnaires In this project the data was collected using a questionnaire. HYPOTHESIS: Hypothesis is a supposition; a proposition or principle which is supposed or taken for granted, in order to draw a conclusion or inference for proof of the point in question; something not proved, but assumed for the purpose of argument, or to account for a fact or an occurrence. The hypothesis for the study would be: Ho::There is no significant effect of proper grievance handling mechanism on the performance of employees. H1:. There is a significant effect of proper grievance handling mechanism on the performance of employees

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CHAPTER 5

43

INTERPRETATION OF RESULTS AND FINDINGS: TABLE 1 AGE * Satisfaction level with the grievance handling procedure count

.

Satisfaction level with the grievance handling procedure extremely low level of satisfaction and strongly disgaree

low level of satisfaction and moderately disagree

moderate level of satisfaction and neither agree nor disagree

high level of satisfaction and strongly agree

Total

AGE 20-30 30-40 40-50 50-60 ABOVE 60 Total

0 1 1 1 0 3

2 1 1 0 1 5

5 4 3 0 0 12

12 7 4 3 4 30

19 13 9 4 5 50

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TABLE 2 Chi-Square Tests

value df Asymp.sig 2 sided

Pearson Chi-Square

Likelihood Ratio

Linear-by-Linear Association

N of Valid Cases

9.023a

11.696

.004

50

12

12

1

.701

.470

.953

a. 17 cells (85.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is .24. HO:There is no significant relationship between the age-group and the satisfaction level with the grievance handling procedure. H1:There is a significant relationship between the age-group and the satisfaction level with the grievance handling procedure. Here,the significance level .701 > than 0.05.Hence,HO is accepted..Therefore,there is no relationship between age-group and satisfaction level.

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TABLE 3 Satisfaction level with the grievance handling procedure

INTERPRETATION:In the above figure 60% have a high level of satisfaction with the grievance handling procedure,24% have moderate level,10%low level and remaining 6% have extremely low level of satisfaction towards the grievance.

Frequency

Percent

Valid Percent

Valid Percent

Valid extremely low level of satisfaction and strongly disagree low level of satisfaction and moderately disagree moderate level of satisfaction and neither agree nor disagree high level of satisfaction and strongly agree Total

3

5

12

30

50

6.0

10.0

24.0

60.0

100.0

6.0

10.0

24.0

60.0

100.0

6.0

10.0

40

100.0

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TABLE 4 Need for improvement in grievance handling procedure

Frequency present Valid present

Cumulative Percent

Valid extremely low level of satisfaction and strongly low level of satisfaction and moderately moderate level of satisfaction and neither agree nor disagree good level of satisfaction and moderately agree high level of satisfaction and strongly agree Total

3

2

13

21

11

50

6.0

4.0

26.0

42.0

22.0

100.0

6.0

4.0

26.0

42.0

22.0

100.0

6.0

10.0

36.0

78.0

100.0

47

FIGURE

2

INTERPRETATION:In the figure,42% strongly agree that there is a need for improvement in the grievance handling method,26%neither agree nor disagree,22%moderately agree.6%strongly agree and 4% moderately disagree.

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TABLE 5 Suggestions from employees are taken into consideration


Cumulative Percent


4

6

28

8

4

50

8.0

12.0

56.0

16.0

8.0

100.0

8.0

12.0

56.0

16.0

8.0

100.0

8.0

20.0

76.0

92.0

100.0

49

FIGURE 3

INTERPRETATION:In this figure 40% strongly agree that management should pay more attention to the problems of the employees,38%moderately agree,10%neither agree nor disagree,and 6% moderately disagree and strongly disagree each.

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TABLE 6

Response of hr department towards the grievance


Cumulative Percent

Valid extremely low level of satisfaction and strongly low level of satisfaction and moderately disagree moderate level of satisfaction and neither agree nor disagree good level of satisfaction and moderately agree high level of satisfaction and strongly agree Total

5

2

11

24

8

50

10.0

4.0

22.0

48.0

16.0

100.0

10.0

4.0

22.0

48.0

16.0

100.0

10.0

14.0

36.0

84.0

100.0

51

FIGURE 5

INTERPRETATION:In this figure,48% have good level of satisfaction,22% moderate level of satisfaction,16% high level of satisfaction,10%extremely low level of satisfaction and 4% low level of satisfaction with the response of the hr department towards the grievances of the employees

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TABLE 7 Grievance details should be documented


Cumulative Percent

Valid extremely low level of satisfaction and strongly good level of satisfaction and moderately agree high level of satisfaction and strongly agree Total

5

18

27

50

10.0

36.0

54.0

100.0

10.0

36.0

54.0

100.0

10.0

46.0

100.0

FIGURE 6

INTERPRETATION:In the above figure,54% employees strongly agree with the fact that grievance details should be documented,36%moderately agree and the remaining 10% neither agree nor disagree.

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TABLE 8

Immediate supervisor should be more trained in handling the grievance


Cumulative Percent


7

6

27

5

5

50

14.0

12.0

54.0

10.0

10.0

100.0

14.0

12.0

54.0

10.0

10.0

100.0

14.0

26.0

80.0

90.0

100.0

54

FIGURE 7

INTERPRETATION:In the figure,54% neither agree nor disagree that the immediate supervisor should be more trained in handling the grievances,14%strongly disagree,12%moderately disagree and 10% moderately agree and strongly agree

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TABLE 9 Satisfaction level with the lighting arrangement

FIGURE

8

INTERPRETATION:In the above figure,72% employees have level of satisfaction towards the lighting arrangement,20% have good level of satisfaction and 8% have moderate level of satisfaction


Cumulative Percent


4

10

38

50

8.0

20.0

72.0

100.0

8.0

20.0

72.0

100.0

8.0

28.0

100.0

56

TABLE 10 Canteen facility satisfaction level


Cumulative Percent

Valid good level of satisfaction and moderately agree high level of satisfaction and strongly agree Total

13

37

50

27.0

74.0

100.0

26.0

74.0

100.0

26.0

100.0

FIGURE 9

INTERPRETATION:In the above figure,74% have a high level of satisfaction with the canteen facility and 26% have a good level of satisfaction with it.

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TABLE 11 Satisfaction level with the working hours


Cumulative Percent


3

5

21

16

5

50

8.0

10.0

42.0

32.0

10.0

100.0

6.0

10.0

42.0

32.0

10.0

100.0

6.0

16.0

58.0

90.0

100.0

58

FIGURE 10

INTERPRETATION:In this figure,42% have moderate satisfaction with the working hours,32% have good level,10% have high and moderate level and the remaining 6% have extremely low level of satisfaction with it.

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TABLE 12

Satisfaction level with the medical facility in the organisation


Cumulative Percent


5

18

27

50

10.0

36.0

54.0

100.0

10.0

36.0

54.0

100.0

10.0

46.0

100.0

FIGURE 11

INTERPRETATION:In the above figure,50% have high level of satisfaction,32%good level of satisfaction and the remaining 18% have moderate level of satisfaction with the medical facility.

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TABLE 13

Satisfaction level with the payment of salary procedure


Cumulative Percent


4

5

13

18

10

50

8.0

10.0

26.0

36.0

20.0

100.0

8.0

10.0

26.0

36.0

20.0

100.0

8.0

18.0

44.0

80.0

100.0

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FIGURE

12

INTERPRETATION:In this figure,36% have good level of satisfaction,26% moderate level,20% high level,10% low level and 8% have extremely low level of satisfaction with the payment of salary procedure.

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TABLE 14 rating to the training procedure in the organisation

FIGURE 13

INTERPRETATION:In this figure,48% have good level of satisfaction,24% high level,22%moderate and 6% have low level of satisfaction with the training procedure in the organisation.


Cumulative Percent

Valid low level of satisfaction and moderately moderate level of satisfaction and neither agree nor disagree good level of satisfaction and moderately agree high level of satisfaction and strongly agree Total

3

11

24

12

50

6.0

22.0

48.0

24.0

100.0

6.0

22.0

48.0

24.0

100.0

6.0

28.0

76.0

100.0

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TABLE 15 Satisfaction with the leave granting system


Cumulative Percent


5

10

15

11

9

50

8.0

10.0

30.0

22.0

18.0

100.0

10.0

20.0

30.0

22.0

18.0

100.0

10.0

30.0

60.0

82.0

100.0

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FIGURE 14

INTERPRETATION:In this figure,30% have moderate level,22% have good level,20% low level,18% have high level and 10% have extremely low level of satisfaction with the leave granting system

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TABLE 16

Satisfaction with the performance based cash reward and bonus


Cumulative Percent

Valid low level of satisfaction and moderately moderate level of satisfaction and neither agree nor disagree good level of satisfaction and moderately agree high level of satisfaction and strongly agree Total

7

17

12

14

50

14.0

34.0

24.0

28.0

100.0

14.0

34.0

24.0

28.0

100.0

14.0

48.0

72.0

100.0

66

FIGURE 15

INTERPRETATION:In the figure,34% have moderate level of satisfaction,28% have high level,24% good level and 14% have low level of satisfaction with the performance based cash reward and bonus.

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TABLE 17

Performance appraisal system in the organisation is unbiased


Cumulative Percent


5

10

15

11

9

50

8.0

10.0

30.0

22.0

18.0

100.0

10.0

20.0

30.0

22.0

18.0

100.0

10.0

30.0

60.0

82.0

100.0

68

FIGURE 16

INTERPRETATION:In this figure,36% moderately agree,30%neither agree nor disagree,16% strongly agree,14% moderately agree and 4% strongly disagree that the performance appraisal system in the organisation is unbiased

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CHAPTER 6

70

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION: Every organisation has realized the importance of resolving grievances in an effective manner.A grievance can be defined as any sort of dissatisfaction, which needs to be redressed in order to bring about the smooth functioning of the individual in the organization. To a great extent the aggravation of industrial problems depends on manager's approaches and attitude in effective handling of employees grievances. Care should be taken in the way managers approaches the problem and perceiving the pros and cons of the situation. The conflict management approaches include the win-win strategy that help in the healthy organisational practices and which reflects the strong organisational culture. In today’s challenging business scenario,effective grievance handling is one of the major issue.A grievance is often a symptom of an underlying problem.However the complexity of grievances vary,some are more serious in nature and hence difficult to resolve.Grievances related with promotion,transfers,layoff,etc. fall in this category.One interesting cause of a grievance can be the problem employees.These are individuals,who,by their nature,are negative,dissatisfied and prone to complaints. It can also be said that when an employee views his concern over a particular workrelated issue,an effort should be made to settle it down effectively.If this is not being done,it would cost the organisation its future. After the analysis of the primary data, that was being collected for this topic,it was found that age-group has no significant influence on the satisfaction level of the employees with the grievance handling mechanism in the organisation.This itself makes it clear that grievanced can occur at any age and at any time irrespective of the tenure of the service in an organisation. Most of the employees are satisfied with the grievance handling mechanism of the organisation,but a majority still opines that it can be further improves for the betterment. A large number of the employees also agreed to the point that the management should pay more attention towards the problems of the employees.This would be beneficial for both employees and the organisation. Most of the emloyees are satisfied with the response of the hr department towards the grievance of the employees.However,some are dissatisfied also.So,the hr department needs to sort out this issue also. The employees also feel that grievance details need to be documented by the organisation,for further utilization of the same.Most of them also feel that their

71

immediate supervisor are competent enough to handle their grievance and there is no such immense need for their further training. It was also evident that a large number of employees are fully satisfied with the lighting system,medical facility,canteen facility and the quality of the food that is beng offered there. The employees also have a different opinion about their working hours,some of them are satisfied with it and some showed some kind of unhappiness with it.Similar is the case with respect to the leave granting system. It was also being found that the employees are happy with the trainig procedure that is being designed for the workers of every module.This is a good sign for the organisation. One interesting fact that was found ,was that the lack of proper grievance handling has a bearing upon the performance of the employees.This aspect should always be taken care of.As an individual’s performance is linked with that of the organisation’s. Hence,it can be said that,grievances stem from management policies and practices, particularly when they lack consistency, fair play and the desired level of flexibility. Grievances also may arise because of intra-personal problems of individual employees and union practices aimed at reinforcing and consolidating their bargaining, strength. The absence of proper two-way flow of communication can indeed be a fertile ground for breeding grievances.

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CHAPTER 7

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7(a) RECOMMENDATIONS: The rate of grievance reporting can also be perceived as a presence or lack of confidence toward the grievance management.An employee would file a grievance related with an aversive work condition,only when he has confidence in the ability of management and the fairness of the process.On the other hand,low filing rate of grievances not necessarily means that the emplyees are satisfied with every aspect,it may also mean they have a fear of management reprisal. So,I would like to extend the following points of recommendations,on the basis of my study: 1) The management should devise strategies to manage younger, male, more educated and more skilled employees because these are employees who are most likely to file grievances. 2)There is a need of a proper grievance handling cell in the organisation ,for speedy redressal of an employee’s grievance. 3)The absence of proper two-way flow of communication can indeed be a fertile ground for breeding grievances. So there should be a proper communication system in the organization.

4) The employees also suggested the hr policies of the organization to be updated.

5) The performance appraisal also needs to be worked upon.

6) An open door policy can also be implemented.

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7(b) LIMITATIONS:

1) Most of the respondents were busy with their respective work.

2) The respondents were reluctant to give the details.

3) The limitation of sample size.

4) The guidelines given by the company.

5) The time constraint.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY: BOOK: �Dessler Gary and Varkkey Biju (2009) Human Resource Management,11th

Edition,Pearson Prentice Hall. �Malhotra Naresh K. (2008) Marketing Reaserch,5th edition �Monappa Arun (2000) Industrial Relations,7th Edition,Tata Mc Graw-Hill �Ratnam Venkata C.S (2006) Industrial Relations,2nd Edition,Oxford University Press WEBSITES: �www.answers.com �www.allbusiness.com �www.bpoindia.org �www.bnet.com �www.businesslink.gov.uk �www.emeraldinsight.com �www.sitehr.com �www.slideshare.com JOURNAL: �Ganapathi R. and Balaji Prasad M.(2008) “Effects of Working Environment on the Performance of Executives”, Asia-Pacific Business Review,Volume IV,No.3,pp 117-123. �Matlay Harry (1999) “Employee Relations in the Firm”, Employee Relations,Volume 21,NO.3,pp 285-295.

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ANNEXURE: QUESTIONNAIRE: THE RATING 5 TO 1 DENOTES : 5 DENOTES : HIGH LEVEL OF SATISFACTION AND STRONGLY AGREE 4 DENOTES : GOOD LEVEL OF SATISFACTION AND MODERATELY AGREE 3 DENOTES : MODERATE LEVEL OF SATISFACTION AND NEITHER AGREE NOR DISAGREE 2 DENOTES : LOW LEVEL OF SATISFACTION AND MODERATELY DISAGREE1 DENOTES : EXTREMELY LOW LEVEL OF SATISFACTION AND DISAGREE QUESTIONNAIRE: 1) AGE -20 to 30 -30 to 40 -40 to 50 -50 to 60 -60 and above 2)Is there any grievance cell for the employees in your organisation? -YES -NO

5 4 3 2 1

3 HOW MUCH ARE YOU SATISFIED WITH THE GRIEVANCE HANDLING PROCEDURE BEING FOLLOWED IN YOUR ORGANIZATION ?

4 HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE MANAGERS ATTITUDE TOWARDS EMPLOYEES?

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5 GRIEVANCE HANDLING PROCEDURE SHOULD IMPROVE IN YOUR ORGANIZATION :

6 CAN YOUR COMPLAINT GO AGAINST YOU

7 THERE SHOULD BE A PROPER GRIEVANCE CELL DESIGNED IN THIS ORGANISATION

8 SUGGESTIONS FROM EMPLOYEES ARE WELCOMED

9 THE MANAGERS SHOULD PAY MORE ATTENTION TO THE PROBLEMS OF EMPLOYEES.

10 RATE THE RESPONSE OF THE H.R DEPTT. TO YOUR GRIEVANCE

11 THE GRIEVANCE DETAILS SHOULD BE DOCUMENTED

12 IMMEDIATE SUPERVISOR SHOULD BE MORE TRAINED IN HANDLING YOUR GRIEVANCES :

13 THE MANAGER SHOULD BE MORE COMPETENT TO SOLVE PROBLEMS AND LISTEN TO YOU

14 RATE ON THE SCALE OF 5 , THE LIGHTING ARRANGEMENTS IN YOUR ORGANIZATION

15 RATE THE PROVISION FOR PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENTS BEING PROVIDED TO YOU

16 RATE ON THE SCALE OF 5 , THE WASHROOM FACILITIES.

17 SATISFACTION LEVEL WITH YOUR WORKING HOURS

18 SATISFACTION LEVEL WITH THE MEDICAL FACILITIES BEING PROVIDED BY YOUR ORGANIZATION

19 RATE THE PAYMENT OF SALARY PROCEDURE BEING FOLLOWED IN YOUR ORGANIZATION ON THE SCALE OF 5.

10

WHAT IS YOUR SATISFACTION LEVEL WITH THE DISCIPLINARY ACTION BEING TAKEN IN YOUR ORGANIZATION AGAINST

78

ANY MISCONDUCT

21 RATE THE H.R DEPTT S CONCERN FOR ITS EMPLOYEES ON THE SCALE OF 5 ( 5 BEING MAX. CONCERN

22 RATE THE TRAINING PROCEDURE BEING FOLLOWED IN YOUR ORGANIZATION

23 HOW DO YOU RATE THE LEAVE GRANTING SYSTEM IN YOU ORGANIZATION

24 WHAT IS YOUR SATISFACTION LEVEL WITH THE PROVISION OF CASH REWARD OR BONUSES BEING GIVEN TO YOU ON THE BASIS OF PERFORMANCE

25 RATE THE CLEANLINESS BEING MAINTAINED IN RANBAXY

26 RATE THE SERVICE OF THE HELPERS IN THE CANTEEN ON THE SCALE OF 5(5 BEING BEST QUALITY SERVICE)

27 RATE THE FOOD QUALITY IN THE CANTEEN

28 RECREATIONAL FACILITIES BEING PROVIDED BY THE ORGANIZATION

29 AVAILABILITY OF RESOURCES SUCH AS STATIONERY , FILES WHENEVER YOU NEED THEM

30 RATE THE DISCIPLINE MAINTAINED IN THE ORG

31 MARK THE ATTITUDE OF THE MANAGER

32 KNOWLEDGE OF COMPANY S GOALS MISSION VISION RATE ON THE SCALE OF 5

33 THE VENTILATION AT YOUR WORKPLACE SHOULD IMPROVE

34 PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL SYSTEM IN YOUR ORGANIZATION IS UNBIASED :

35 COMPENSATION FOR ANY ACCIDENT IS PROVIDED WITHIN THE STIPULATED TIME PERIOD

36 ARE MANAGERS BIASED

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37 THE COMPANY FOLLOWS ITS PROMOTION AND TRANSFER OFFERS AS MENTIONED IN ITS POLICIES.

38 THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS SHOULD IMPROVE IN YOUR ORGANIZATION

39

THERE SHOULD BE MORE INTERACTION BETWEEN EMPLOYEES AND MANAGERS

40 WHAT AREA CAN THE COMPANY IMPROVE UPON. RANK IN ORDER OF PREFERENCE

a. DISCIPLINE

b. HANDLING OF GRIEVANCES

c. CLEANLINESS

d. COMPETENCY OF MANAGERS

e. ANY OTHER AREA ………...............

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