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As an employee in the UK, you're protected by a variety of employment rights. Make sure you assert these rights to the full by using professionally prepared letters when corresponding with your employer and you need a more formal approach.
There are various times in the course of your employment when you might need to send an official letter to your employer. Since the right to request flexible working was extended to all employees in 2014, this is a good example of a situation that requires formal communication. Although your employer may provide you with a disciplinary and grievance process, it's always a good idea to use a professionally prepared letter to raise a grievance. If your grievance is not resolved, or you feel that any employment decision is unfair, you may decide to submit a notice of appeal. Finally, when it comes to resigning from your position, doing so with a professionally written letter can help ensure that you leave on good terms.
Flexible working refers to any working arrangement that is different from the default arrangement in your workplace or which would otherwise change your existing working arrangements. Working from home, working part-time, annualised or compressed hours, term-time working and job-sharing are all examples of flexible working.
As long as you've been in your job for at least 26 weeks and have not made a flexible working request in the past year, you have a statutory right to make a request. If you decide to make a formal request, use a Flexible working request letter. This will set out your new proposed working pattern and suggest how the business can deal with any disruption which could result from this different working pattern.
Some employers have a Flexible working policy that clarifies the process of making and dealing with requests.
For more information, read Flexible working.
Any concern, problem or complaint raised by an employee is known as a work-related grievance. Some of the most common workplace issues which result in grievances relate to:
Before you raise a formal grievance, you should first talk to your employer informally to see if that solves the problem. If that fails to have the desired effect, then consider writing a formal grievance letter. Use a Grievance letter which should contain details of the workplace issue you have been experiencing, including the time it started, and demonstrate any steps you have taken to deal with the problem, along with proposals for tackling your grievance. You can use this letter to specify who you would like to accompany you to any subsequent formal meeting. For more information, read Employee grievances and raising grievances.
Always check your employer's handbook for employees, if there is one, and follow any Grievance procedure it sets out. Additionally, you should follow the Acas Code of Practice.
If you think that a decision by your employer is unfair, you may decide to appeal. The most common types of employee appeals concern:
Although your employer is not required to provide a right of appeal, it is generally in their best interests to do so.
In order to submit your appeal, use an Employee appeal letter. The formal notice of appeal should set out the grounds of your appeal such as incorrect evidence, new evidence, problems with the decision process or, in the case of redundancy, unfair selection grounds and incorrect reasons for redundancy. You can also use the letter to specify who you would like to accompany you to the appeal hearing.
As with the grievance letter, you should always check your employer's employee handbook, if there is one, and follow any Grievance procedure it sets out. Additionally, you should ensure that you follow the Acas Code of Practice. For more information, read Appealing decisions made by employers.
Whether you have received a new job offer or want to resign for personal reasons, make sure you resign from your job on good terms by writing a professional letter. Consider using a formal Resignation letter for this purpose, which sets out the relevant details, including the effective date of resignation, full details of yourself and your employer and the amount of time you have spent in your job. It also allows you to specify your notice period and to give reasons for your resignation if you want to. For more information, read Resigning from employment.
If you're resigning due to problems at work, such as discrimination, harassment or bullying, you can consider resigning and claiming that you were constructively dismissed. However, you should Ask a lawyer to assess the merits of your case before you consider resigning and claiming constructive dismissal. For further information, read Constructive dismissal.
Most employment disputes that cannot be resolved between the employer and employee, or through conciliation, end up in the employment tribunal where a legally qualified employment judge will hear the case and make a decision based on the facts and merits of each person's cause. Some of the most common issued raised in the employment tribunal are discrimination cases, unfair dismissal, harassment and redundancy payments. However, the employment tribunal should only be considered as a last resort if all else fails. For further information, read Employment tribunals.