Letter Advising of a Complaint Against an Employee

Even organisations noted for a professional atmosphere and superior customer service may receive a complaint against an employee at some time or another. Such a letter may come from a client or customer external to the organisation, or it may come from another employee within the organisation. When complaints are made against an employee, this person should be notified of the complaint in writing. General details of the complaint may be included in this notification, and if formal procedures are in place regarding how an employee should respond then this information should be included as well. A letter advising of a complaint against an employee may be included in the employee's personnel file and because of this should be formatted as a formal business communication.

Details of the Complaint

Unless a separate report or summary of the complaint is going to be forwarded to the employee, a letter advising of a complaint against that employee should include the facts of the complaint. This would include who made the complaint (either a name or position, for example "a co-worker" or "a customer in the High Street branch"), when the complaint was lodged, when the actions that are being complained about occurred, and the behaviours that are the focus of the complaint. If details of the behaviour may to be vague in the letter, for example "acted in a sexually harassing manner" or "was unprofessional during a meeting" then more specific details should then be included in a report or summary about the incident.

Procedures for Addressing a Complaint

A letter advising of a complaint against an employee should offer that employee further information on how (s)he can address the complaint. If the organisation has firm policies and procedures in place then these should be referenced or the employee should be directed to a source of information (for example, a company handbook or a Human Resources Officer) from which (s)he can find out more. Such letters should also include details of how their response should be made (for example, in writing or vocally) and a date by which the response should be made. If there is a chance that a formal investigation will be opened following this procedure then this information should be made clear as well.

Formal Business Letter Format

Letters advising employees that complaints have been made against them are formal business communications and so should be formatted as such. These letters should include the name and job title of both the writer and the recipient and should employee formal salutations and closings. These letters should also be typed and printed on company letterhead. Sending such letters through the organisation's internal mail is acceptable.

Sample of a Letter Advising of a Complaint Against an Employee

Mr. Henry Thomas
Job Title
Organisation
Organisation Mailing Address

Date

Ms. Fiona Wells
Job Title
Organisation
Organisation Mailing Address

Dear Ms. Wells,

Please be advised that a complaint was lodged against you by a customer of [Organisation]'s branch at [Address or Location].

It was alleged that on [Date] you were "rude" toward the customer and did not offer to bag his purchases for him as per [Organisation]'s policies.

Please find attached a Complaint Response Form on which you should record your thoughts on this complaint. If you do not choose to respond, please sign the Form in front of a Human Resource's representative. Your response is due by [Date].

For more information on [Organisation]'s policies regarding complaints against employees, please see Chapter Six of your Employee Handbook. If you require a further copy of the Employee Handbook it can be obtained from Human Resources.

Yours sincerely,

___________________
Mr. Henry Thomas
Job Title