Fairness At Work complaints and decisions statistics: FOI release

Information requested

1. What statistics are available for fainess at work complaints. For example does the Scottish Government record the nature of the complaints, the grades of staff etc.
2. How many decision letters have been issued without any mention that the applicant has the right of an appeal, especially those which were unsuccessful.
3. Is there a template for “fairness at work” deciding officers? If so, please provide a copy.

Response

1. The HR People Advice and Wellbeing Team records information about complaints raised formally under Fairness at Work . This includes information about the nature of the case, details of the complainant (name, grade, business area), name of the person/people against whom the complaint has been raised, details of the investigation and details of the panel.
2. The expectation is that all decision letters contain information about the right of appeal. We endeavour to ensure that this happens in all cases. Under section 12 of FOISA it would be above the cost limit to review every decision letter retrospectively to check if this provision was included. If you wish you could restrict your request to a specific time period, such as 1 year, please confirm by respond by email.
3. Template letters are not used for Fairness at Work cases because the circumstances of each case varies. Cases are dealt with individually by HR, with outcome letters reflecting the Deciding Officer’s findings.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.