Have more than one avenue for employee complaints

Q         Can an employee bypass her supervisor and go straight to HR just because she has been written up previously?

A   The short answer is that nothing other than employer policy would prevent her from bypassing her supervisor. No employer should have such a policy.

Employers often prefer for employees to follow a “chain of command” and talk first with their immediate supervisor about workplace issues. Often that is the most efficient way to deal with work-related problems.

There are good reasons, however, for permitting the employee to bypass the supervisor. She may feel she can't get the help she needs from her supervisor. She may feel the supervisor is unsympathetic or unresponsive to her concerns or is taking too long to address the issue.

The supervisor may even be the problem, or at least a part of the problem. The U.S. Supreme Court has recognized this reality and encouraged employers that draft harassment policies to have multiple levels of complaint. In that manner, an employee’s concern can be promptly and effectively addressed, and she isn’t limited to complaining to a person she believes is part of the problem she wants to address.