Sasquatch Media Grounds’ Stakeholder Grievance Procedure

Purpose

Sasquatch Media Grounds’ business interacts with a lot of people, from our clients elevate their voice through our services to the communities that are impacted by what they hear. If any of these people ever feel we've fallen short of our values, we want to hear about it and make it right. This procedure explains how anyone affected by our business can raise a concern, what happens next, and how we protect people who come forward.

This is a separate and additional policy to our Stakeholder Governance policy. A complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction about an issue, whereas a grievance is a formal allegation that a specific policy, right, or contract has been violated. Complaints can often be resolved quickly, while grievances trigger a structured investigation.

Scope

This procedure is open to anyone affected by Sasquatch Media Grounds' business, including but not limited to:

  • Creators and members (our customers)

  • The broader creator community

  • Our suppliers

  • Independent contractors we hire

  • The local Vancouver, WA community

What Counts as a Grievance

We will accept a grievance related to our business conduct, including but not limited to:

  • Unfair, unsafe, or disrespectful treatment of a client, supplier, or contractor

  • Concerns about environmental impact, human rights violations, or other concerns related to our supply chain

  • Concerns about unethical business conduct or other governance issues

  • Concerns about discrimination or a breach of our JEDI commitments

  • Concerns about retaliation against someone who previously raised a grievance

  • Any other concern that a stakeholder believes a specific policy, right, or contract has been violated

Grievance Channels

A grievance can be raised through any of the following channels:

  • The grievance form on our website

  • Emailed directly to Mary via the company’s contact form on the website or other feedback channels (e.g. surveys, etc)

  • If a grievance is raised in person, Sasquatch Media Grounds must direct the individual to submit a formal, written grievance through the company’s grievance form on the website so that the details can be properly recorded and addressed

Grievance Management

We follow these steps for every grievance we receive:

1. Acknowledge

  • We confirm we've received the grievance and let the person know who is reviewing it.

  • Within 5 business days

2. Review

  • We look into what happened, which may include talking to the person who raised it and anyone else involved.

  • Within 15 business days of acknowledgment

3. Decide

  • We decide whether the grievance is accepted, and if so, what we will do about it. If we decide not to accept it, we explain why.

  • Within 10 business days of finishing the review

4. Resolve and follow up

  • We carry out the agreed resolution and let the person know it's done.

  • Within 30 business days of the decision, unless we've explained a delay

  • 5. Log

  • We record the grievance and related details in our Grievance Log.

  • At each step above

If a grievance is complex and these timelines don't fit, we will tell the person raising it what the delay is and give them a new expected date. We would rather be honest about a longer timeline than miss a deadline silently.

At each step, Sasquatch Media Grounds will communicate with the individual who submitted the grievance as well as the outcome. We will clearly state if the grievance has been accepted, when and how it was resolved, or why it was not accepted.

Protecting people who come forward

Nobody will face negative consequences for raising a grievance in good faith. This means, for example, that a supplier will not lose our business, a contractor will not lose future work, and a customer or community member will not be treated differently, because they raised a concern.

We will keep the identity of the person raising a grievance confidential wherever possible, and we will only share details with people who need them to review or resolve the issue.

If someone believes they have experienced retaliation for raising a grievance, they can raise that as a new grievance through this same procedure.

Review and approval

Mary Williams, as the highest governing body of Sasquatch Media Grounds, is responsible for this procedure, making sure it stays accurate, and is followed. Mary has approved this procedure.

Grievance Log

Every grievance, however it's received, gets logged here. This log is reviewed at least once a year to look for patterns (for example, the same type of grievance coming up more than once) and to decide if a policy or practice needs to change as a result.