Conflict Resolution Policy

Purpose

Problems, misunderstandings and frustrations may arise in the workplace. It is [Company Name]'s intent to be responsive to its employees and their concerns. Therefore, an employee who is confronted with a problem may use the procedure described below to resolve or clarify his or her concerns.

The purpose of this policy is to provide a quick, effective and consistently applied method for a nonsupervisory employee to present his or her concerns to management and have those concerns internally resolved.

Procedures

Step 1: Discussion with supervisor

Initially, employees should bring their concerns or complaints to their immediate supervisor. If the complaint involves the employee's supervisor, the employee should schedule an appointment with that supervisor to discuss the problem that gave rise to the complaint within five working days of the date the incident occurred.

The immediate supervisor should respond in writing to the complaint within five days of the meeting held with the complainant employee.

Step 2: Written complaint and decision

If the discussion with the immediate supervisor does not resolve the problem to the mutual satisfaction of the employee and the supervisor, or if the supervisor does not respond to the complaint, the employee may submit a written complaint to the employee's director/department head. Employees may request assistance with writing their complaints from the human resource (HR) department.

The employee's director/department head should forward a copy of the complaint to the HR department.

The submission of the written complaint is due within five working days of the response from the supervisor. The complaint should include:

1. • The problem and the date when the incident occurred.
   • Suggestions on ways to resolve the problem.
   • A copy of the immediate supervisor's written response or a summary of his or her verbal response and the date when the employee met with the immediate supervisor. If the supervisor provided no response, the complaint should state this.

Upon receipt of the formal complaint, the director/department head must schedule a meeting with the employee within five working days to discuss the complaint. Within approximately five working days after the discussion, the director/department head should issue a decision both in writing and orally to the employee filing the complaint.

Step 3: Appeal of decision

If the employee is dissatisfied with the decision of the director/department head, the employee may, within five working days, appeal this decision in writing to the HR department.

The HR department may call a meeting with the parties directly involved to facilitate a resolution. Or the HR department may refer complaints to a review committee if it believes that the complaint raises serious questions of fact or interpretation of policy. The HR department may gather further information from involved parties.

Additional Guidance

If an employee fails to appeal from one level to the next level of this procedure within the time limits set forth above, the problem should be considered settled on the basis of the last decision, and the problem should not be subject to further consideration.

Because problems are best resolved on an individual basis, the conflict resolution procedure may be initiated only by individual employees and not by groups of employees. All complaints must be made in good faith.

[Company Name] reserves the right to impose appropriate disciplinary action for any conduct it considers to be disruptive or inappropriate. The circumstances of each situation may differ, and the level of disciplinary action may also vary, depending on factors such as the nature of the offense, whether it is repeated, the employee's work record and the impact of the conduct on the organization.

No [Company Name] employee will be subject to retaliation for filing a complaint under this policy.