In a trade union, a grievance is a complaint filed by an employee which may be resolved by procedures provided for in a collective agreement.

Such a grievance may arise from a violation of the collective bargaining agreement or violations of the law, such as workplace safety regulations.

Ordinarily, unionized workers will meet with a committee person in order to discuss the problem, which may or may not result in a grievance. If the grievance cannot be resolved through negotiation between labor and management, mediation, arbitration or legal remedies may be employed.

Typically, everyone involved with a grievance has strict time lines which must be met in the processing of this formal complaint, until it is resolved. Employers cannot legally treat an employee any differently whether he or she has filed a grievance or not. The difference between a grievance and a complaint, in the unionized workplace, is whether the subject matter relates to the collective bargaining agreement.

In a union environment, a typical grievance procedure begins with an employee presenting a problem to his or her immediate supervisor within a certain time period after the offending event has occurred.

The supervisor then has a set amount of time to either respond or send the grievance on to be addressed by the head of the department. At this point, a union representative enters the negotiations on behalf of the employee. If the situation is still not resolved, the grievance continues up the chain of command to the manager and the president of the local union.

If the labor union fails to follow the procedures at any point, the contract usually specifies that it must drop the grievance. Conversely, the company is usually obligated to resolve the grievance in the employee's favor if management fails to follow the procedures outlined in the collective bargaining agreement.

If the situation cannot be resolved, the final step in the grievance process is for both parties to present their side to a

pre-designated arbitrator.

The arbitrator's role is to determine the rights of both parties under the labor agreement, and his or her decision is usually final.

The labor contract generally specifies the type of arbitrator used, the method of selecting the arbitrator, the scope of the arbitrator's authority, and the arrangements for the arbitrator's payment.

A potential intermediate step involves presenting the grievance to a mediator, whose job is to help the parties solve their own differences before they reach the formal arbitration phase.

Mediation is usually less time consuming and expensive than arbitration. In addition, the mediator may be able to teach the two parties dispute resolution skills that may be helpful in solving future problems .

All grievances must be reviewed and approved via signature by a committee person before they are be submitted to the employer.

Grievances submitted to the employer without the union's approval will be dismissed and void.