Complaint Investigations
Course Overview
When a complaint is made by an employee, it must be investigated appropriately with the concepts of natural justice and procedural fairness in mind. Issues of misconduct and complaints of bullying, sexual harassment, discrimination and theft are common workplace complaints and must be investigated according to the organisation's investigation process.
This module defines the nature of workplace investigations when dealing with complaints. The roles and responsibilities of the manager and/or investigator are outlined and issues of confidentiality and conflict of interest are addressed. The learner is provided with a step-by-step explanation of the investigation process and should be confident in performing or contributing to this process at the conclusion of the module.
Key Content
What is a workplace investigation?- Natural justice and. procedural fairness.
- Obligations of managers in dealing with workplace complaints and conflict.
- The roles and responsibilities of the investigator.
- Confidentiality.
- Conflict of interest.
- Investigation vs. mediation.
- The investigation process:
- Planning.
- Assessing the complaint.
- Collecting evidence.
- Conducting interviews.
- Recording, storing and reporting information.
- Determining investigation outcomes.
- Managing parties involved in the investigation.
- Investigation pitfalls.
Learning Outcomes
At the completion of this course, learners should be able to:- Identify the nature and scope of complaint investigations in the workplace.
- Distinguish between natural justice and procedural fairness.
- State the roles and responsibilities of managers and the investigator.
- Explain the steps of the investigation process.
- Discuss the concepts of conflict of interest and confidentiality.