Every company dreams of having an army of loyal and reliable employees. However, each working day presents new challenges, and each one of them can test the professional relationships at the centre of the business. This is especially true for warehouse workers. As they are often at risk of injuries, overzealous hours, and other unfair work practices, these employees are often among the most likely band to justifiably complain about their treatment. Few of them will have any qualms about expressing their ire, too, so it’s important to manage these situations carefully and with tact. What can be done to smooth things over here? How should warehouse worker complaints be handled? Find out all of this and more down below. Learn About Employee Escalation Complaints only begin as off-the-cuff remarks. Once things escalate, it can be harder to mitigate problems, and it also becomes impossible to wind back the clock, despite your inevitable regrets on matters. For example, some workers may approach their local council to enforce health and safety policies and receive lawful protection owing to their whistleblowing status. Depending on the scale of the issue, others may approach to media, publicising their grievances to a national or even international audience. Before you address real complaint cases, it’s important to respect and understand the consequences of any potential inaction. If appropriate, acknowledging potential fallout can motivate you to embolden complaints processes. You may also feel more confident and equipped to get ahead of any potential issues, cool tempers, and negotiate your way through any potential tensions. Maintain an open door complaints policy at all times. That way, any reputational damage from an employee complaint can be controlled, mitigated, and potentially subverted. If people think you’re approachable and can address their issues in the strictest confidence, that will likely be the preferable option for them in most scenarios. Be Diligent with Health and Safety The complaints process can be a lot less tension fuelled if there are measures in the warehouse to try and protect people. Being seen to make an effort can make a crucial difference to one’s perception of a work environment, communicating that the company in question at least cares. Companies like The Workplace Depot supply cabled protectors to businesses, preventing wires, hoses, and pipes from being stepped on. Not only is this a budget solution for health and safety problems, but coverings can also protect your equipment, ensuring that it doesn’t needlessly get damaged. It also prevents cables from tangling, leading to much less aggro and wasted time for your employees. The use of anti-slip paints and tape should also be in ready supply. Sufficient PPE should be readily provided, from hearing and eye protection to hard hats and bold visibility jackets. Conduct regular inventory checks to ensure that everything you own is available and not missing. Manual handling limits (20-25kg) should be revised. Training staff in the use of trolleys, and forklifts and pallett trucks, should also prevent avoidable injuries. Only sufficiently qualified staff should have access to this machinery, too. Furthermore, safety notices and signs should be placed along walls and equipment. That way, there’s no excuse for negligence to take place. Put Yourself in the Worker’s Shoes Warehouse workers are often undervalued. Because of this, employers can mistakenly view them as expendable assets and thus undertake harsh responses to any potential complaints. For example, Amazon fired employees who called for better coronavirus health and safety measures to be implemented. The unjustifiable course of action rightly attracted much scrutiny, plunging the company’s reputation into further disrepute. In the end, it’s important to be dignified and measured when encountering complaints from your warehouse workers, either personally or privately. Seek to clarify an employee’s remarks with patience and kindness. Assure them that a formal investigation will take place at the earliest opportunity. Involve the worker’s immediate supervisor and any HR personnel who may be able to provide constant support. Orchestrate a meeting with relevant parties and openly record and document the proceedings. You should also remind your warehouse workers of their rights to appeal any verdict they do not believe is satisfactory. Strengthen all the necessary channels and shepherd disgruntled workers through them, as it will prevent things from spiralling out of control. Thank the Complainant It can take enormous courage for a warehouse worker to approach you with a complaint. They may have real concerns about the treatment or safety of themselves or their colleagues yet risk upsetting the status quo anyway. Irrespective of the outcome, making a complaint is an ethical decision. It should be commended, as often, the employee’s decision to come forward will also give you a window to upgrade and improve your warehouse. A complaint can kickstart a teamwork exercise that elevates everyone’s well-being and prospects instead of something that leads to ruin. Thanking the employee can also shift the tone of the complaint. Where they may have anticipated their thoughts and feelings being challenged, they’ll instead feel appreciated. It can put people at ease, which is important when managing a complaint’s process.

New mental health research from Deloitte has revealed that the cost to employers of poor mental health has increased, to up to £56bn in 2020-21 compared to £45bn in 2019. The overall increase in total costs is due to higher staff turnover. Deloitte’s survey found that 28% of UK employees either left their job in 2021 or they are planning to leave it in 2022, with 61% of respondents saying this was due to poor mental health. Young people (18-29 years old) were found to be most likely to have moved jobs or be considering a job move. One in five (21%) young people surveyed said they were planning to leave and one in four (24%) said they had intentionally left their job in the past 12 months. Of those who had intentionally left or planned to leave their job, two in three (65%) said this decision was driven by poor mental health. Elizabeth Hampson, Deloitte director and author of ‘Mental health and employers: the case for investment – pandemic and beyond’, said: “We have seen poor mental health costs UK employers up to £56 billion a year, based on a new Deloitte survey, an increase of 25% in the cost of poor mental health to employers compared to 2019. “Mental health issues are a strong driver for the ‘Great resignation’. Long hours, increased stress and job insecurity have had a detrimental impact on quality of life during the pandemic. People are leaving their jobs, re-evaluating their careers and changing occupations in large numbers. “Burnout among employees, such as feelings of exhaustion, mental distance from the job and reduced job performance, have been more evident during the pandemic. Measures by employers to improve mental wellbeing should not only benefit employees themselves but should also reduce employment costs such as recruitment costs and provide broader societal benefits.” Jackie Henry, managing partner for people and purpose at Deloitte UK, said: “Wellbeing must become a strategic priority for organisations of every size – not only to support employees experiencing anxiety and stress, but also to prevent people from becoming overwhelmed and overworked in the first place. “COVID-19 has given us an opportunity to tackle stigma and improve awareness. Leadership should set the tone at the top: whether continuing to invest in training to help managers and employees spot signs of poor mental health and understand how to reach their employees and help.” Emma Mamo, Head of Workplace Wellbeing at Mind, said: “It’s shocking but not surprising that the cost of poor mental health to employers is now up to a huge £56 billion per year. We know that the pandemic has taken a huge toll on the mental health of the nation, including our colleagues. “A 2021 survey by Mind of over 40,000 staff working across 114 organisations taking part in our Workplace Wellbeing Index revealed that two in five (41 per cent) employees said their mental health had worsened during the pandemic. “The lockdowns and restrictions gave lots of us more time to think about what we wanted from our lives and our careers, and as a result more of us decided to leave or move jobs. Recruiting and retaining talent is hugely important to employers, and we know employers who invest in staff wellbeing are more likely to report having staff who are happy, productive and less likely to leave. “This latest report from Deloitte suggests employers see a return of £5.30 on average for every £1 invested in staff wellbeing so it’s never been timelier to prioritise staff mental health, especially given staff are once again adjusting to new ways of working, with many employers trialling hybrid working. “Mind can help employers of all sizes and sectors to create mentally healthy workplaces, including through our training and the resources available via our website.”

A new defence and security cluster is to be created to support the surveillance and reconnaissance capability at RAF Waddington.

A local employer has been fined £160,000 by Derby Magistrates Court for failing to keep employees safe from material risks in the workplace, following an investigation from Derby City Council’s Food and Safety department. An employee of Guardian Building Products suffered life-changing injuries following an accident that occurred on 20 August 2018 whilst unloading heavy bathroom panels from a shipping container on site. The incident caused damage to the spinal cord and permanent disability, fundamentally changing the individual’s nature and quality of life. The company pleaded guilty to multiple breaches of the Health and Safety at Work Act (1974), and have been fined £160,000. The investigation found that Guardian Building Products, a bathroom products sales firm, failed to carry out a risk assessment of the task, or to take reasonable steps to protect employees and agency workers and ensure the task could be carried out safely. Speaking after the hearing, Elizabeth Blaney, Food and Safety Manager at Derby City Council, said: “Workplace transport activities are one of the biggest risks in the warehousing and distribution industry. “This incident, and the resulting life-changing injuries suffered, were avoidable and occurred because of a fundamental management failing on the part of the Company, who failed to identify the risks involved in unloading shipping containers of stock and put in controls to protect the workers. “Now that the case is concluded we will proactively raise awareness of the need for businesses in Derby to risk assess unloading of deliveries arriving from port in shipping containers, and put suitable controls in place to protect their workers.”