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What is Mediation - Does it actually work? |
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Mediation seeks to provide an informal and speedy solution to individual workplace conflict, and can be used at any stage of the disagreement or dispute. The process is entirely voluntary, it is flexible, and any agreement is morally rather than legally binding. What the process offers is a safe confidential space for participants to find their own answers with the support of a mediator. It does this in a number of ways:
- by exploring the issues, feelings and concerns of all participants and rebuilding relationships using joint problem solving
- by allowing those involved to understand and empathise with the feelings of those they are in conflict with
- by helping participants develop the skills to resolve workplace difficulties for themselves in future
- by encouraging communication and helping the people involved to find a solution that both sides feel fair and offers a solution that favours them.
In contrast conflict is an inherent part of the employment relationship. A certain degree of healthy conflict - for example, fair competition between individuals to excel in their roles - can be a good thing, and can help to create innovation between teams. But sometimes tension can lead to discord and start to create negative conflict. It is when the initial disagreement is pushed under the carpet and not managed properly that the situation can fester and the conflict spiral.
The organisational costs of conflict include:
- the risk of time consuming formal proceedings such as grievances and employment tribunals
- sickness absence costs
- management time being diverted to deal with the conflict instead of focusing on managing the business
- staff turnover and recruitment costs
- lower staff morale and employee engagement
- poor working relationships within the teams affected. What happens in a mediation?
There are distinct phases in a mediation. The first stage deals with the parties separately to allow them to put across their side of the story and for the mediator to find out what they want out of the process. The remaining stages will generally be dealt with in joint session in order for participants to:
recount their story and listen to that of the other party
explore the issues together
build and write an agreement.
The mediator will then bring the meeting to a close, provide a copy of the agreed statement to those involved and explain their responsibilities for its implementation. In some cases no agreement is reached and other procedures may later be used to try to resolve the conflict. However, nothing that has been said during the mediation can be used in future proceedings
When is mediation appropriate?
Mediation is not a panacea for every dispute or disagreement in the workplace. Nor are there any hard and fast rules governing when and how it should be used.
Who? Mediation can be used for conflict involving colleagues of a similar job or grade, or between those with different jobs and levels of seniority. It can also be used where there is a disagreement between a line manager and a member of staff, or groups of staff.
When? It can be used at any stage in the conflict including to rebuild relationships after a formal dispute has been resolved, although it works best when used in the early stages of a dispute.
What? It can be used to address a range of workplace issues including relationship breakdown, personality clashes, communication problems, and bullying and harassment. It is not generally considered appropriate for matters of discipline.
It is relationship breakdown that emerges as the issue most frequently cited by employers as suitable for mediation. But conflict arising from bullying and harassment is also seen as particularly suited to mediation in certain circumstances
Benefits of mediation
According to the 2008 CIPD survey on workplace mediation, the main benefit in using it is for improving relationships between individuals, cited by 83% of respondents. The other most common benefits include:
- reducing or eliminating the stress involved in using more formal processes (71%)
- retaining valuable employees (63%)
- reducing the number of formal grievances raised (57%)
- developing an organisational culture that focuses on managing and developing people (55%)
- avoiding the cost of defending employment tribunal claims (49%)
- reducing sickness absence (33%)
- being able to maintain confidentiality (18%).
Source: CIPD |
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Top 50 Employers for Gay People in 2009: |
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1 Lloyds TSB
2 Hampshire Constabulary
3 Brighton & Hove City Council
4 Kent Police
5 Nacro
5 Transport for London
7 London Borough of Tower Hamlets
8 Manchester City Council
8 Merseyside Police
10 Home Office
11 Ford
11 IBM
13 Goldman Sachs
14 London Fire Brigade
15 Barclays
16 HM Prison Service
17 Gentoo Group
18 Avon and Somerset Probation Area
19 Cambridge City Council
19 Ernst & Young
21 PricewaterhouseCoopers
22 KPMG
22 West Yorkshire Police
24 Staffordshire Police
25 BT
26 East Sussex County Council
26 Scottish Government
28 Cheshire Constabulary
28 Commission for Social Care Inspection
28 West Midlands Police
31 Simmons & Simmons
32 Lothian & Borders Police
33 Credit Suisse
33 Greater Manchester Police
35 Metropolitan Police Service
36 Gloucestershire County Council
37 Citizens Advice
37 Nottinghamshire County Council
39 Environment Agency
39 Environment Agency Wales
39 Newham College
39 West Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service
43 London Development Agency
43 Metropolitan Housing Partnership
45 Royal Bank of Scotland Group
45 Sheffield City Council
47 Shaw Trust
48 Essex Police
48 Thames Valley Police
50 HM Revenue & Customs
50 North Wales Police
50 Pinsent Masons LLP
Source: Stonewall - the lesbian, gay and bisexual charity
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| Interesting Case Law - Age Discrimination |
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A former NHS manager who was discriminated against because of her age has been awarded £39,000 damages.Linda Sturdy was 56 when Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust passed her over for a job running breast-screening services. An employment tribunal ruled the hospital worker, from Ripon, North Yorkshire, was turned down because she was nearing retirement age.
Judge Christine Lee said the inquiry to Mrs Sturdy's feeling was 'about as serious as it gets. The managers had failed to carry out an unbiased investigatjion when she complained of age discrimination and had behaved towards her in a way that was 'high handed, malicious, insulting and oppressive'.
Mrs Sturdy said: "I can't say it makes me feel any better about what has happened, because it has been an absolutely horrible experience, and I would never wish anyone to go through what I have been through. "I feel that the trust and individual managers should be brought to account for what they have done, so from that perspective I am obviously pleased with the outcome."
Mrs Sturdy had worked in radiology for 38 years when she applied for the role of principle radiographer at Sea croft Hospital.
The tribunal heard Brian Godfrey, head of the clinical management team for the hospital's radiology department, told her he didn't realise she was "so old" when she said she would be retiring in 2010. Mr Godfrey had previously indicated to Mrs Sturdy that he saw her in the new role and would recommend her to the interview panel, of which he was a member. But the panel instead gave the job to a 43-year-old woman who only had three years service.
Mrs Sturdy said she still felt far from reaching the end of her ordeal. "It has finished my career, my career has ended", she said. "I was at the pinnacle of my career, I had worked for 34 years in the NHS and had worked with the trust for 17 years.
"I set up that service from the beginning - and its all just been removed - literally the rug was pulled from underneath me."
She added she was now also pursuing an unfair dismissal claim against the trust.
Source: BBC |
| Diversity Dilemmas - Cultural Boundaries Limits Job Requirements |
I manage a team of 5 women, two are of Muslim faith and one woman does not drive. Our organisation runs events and part of our remit is to collect key note speakers from the airport and take them to the event. About 90% of the speakers are men. One of my staff members (who is Muslim) said that due to her culture, she is not allowed to 'be alone' with men, therefore cannot always participate in the 'airport run'. The other Muslim woman does not have the same criteria. Whilst I can allocate these tasks to the other three women, I am concerned as it puts pressure on these women to do a significant number of airport journeys in any given month. It is also a time consuming task taking into consideration the M25 traffic.
Whilst I respect my staff member's request not to be alone with men, the Director strongly believes that this woman should conduct her duties as specified in her job description. However the Director is not putting any pressure on my other staff member to take driving lessons.
Is the Director entitled to do this? Surely this is discrimination on the ground of religion? Please advice. |
| Equality and Diversity Events |
Blue Tulip Training is hosting a series of regular lunchtime events for HR Practitioners, Solicitors, Managers, designed to provide an update on knowledge, share good practice and pool experiences.
Bullying and harassment dilemmas, dealing with discrimination complaints and sharing good practice are just a few of the topics on the agenda.
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| About Blue Tulip Training |
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Its diversity focus has developed into four strands:
Training - Equality and Diversity, Managing Diversity, Bullying and Harassment
Consultancy - Research based or specific development focus E.g. Conducting diversity audits
Independent, impartial and independent Investigations into allegations of bullying and harassment
Coaching - For staff from a Black or Minority Ethnic background or for managers who wish to implement diversity, good practice and effective working practice.
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Our sponsors |
Blue Tulip Training is affiliated with Asian Women Enterprise - A networking solution, bringing Asian Women together to share, inspire and motivate
www.asianwomenenterprise.com
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| Friday 1 May |
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Beltane (Pagan)
This is a fire festival that celebrates the coming of summer and the fertility of the coming year. Fire is an important element of most celebrations, where it is meant to purify, cleanse and revitalise. People leap over the Beltane fire to bring good fortune, fertility and happiness for the year. Pagans celebrate Beltane with maypole dances, symbolizing the mystery of the Sacred Marriage of Goddess and God. |
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Monday 4 May |
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May Bank Holiday |
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May Day was an important day in the Middle Ages and was a favourite holiday of many English villages. People used to cut down young trees and stick them in the ground in the village to mark the arrival of summer. This is the origin of the maypole. People danced around them in celebration of the end of winter and the start of the fine weather that would allow planting to begin |
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Saturday 9 May |
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Wesak - Buddha Day (Buddhist)
This is the most important of the Buddhist Festivals, as it marks Buddha's Birthday, and for some his birth and death. Homes may be cleaned and then decorated colourfully. In many countries Buddhist visit temple and give offering to monks, such as food and flowers. Chanting and praying are an important part of this festival. They may also hang paper lanterns and release caged birds. |
| Thursday 21 May |
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Ascension Day (Christian)
Ascension Day marks the last earthly appearance of Christ after his resurrection. This is the fortieth day after Easter Sunday and is to commemorate the ascension on Jesus into heaven. |
| Saturday 23 May |
Ascension of Baha'u'llah (Baha'i)
The Bab was the Forerunner of Baha'u'llah, founder of the Baha'i faith. His mission was to prepare the world for the coming of Baha'u'llah and he declared it in the evening of May 22 1844. |
Celebrated 2 hours after sunset on the 22 May. To mark this day Bahai's abstain from work on this day (23 May).
Birthday of Guru Amar Das (Nanakshahi calendar - Sikh)
Guru Amar Das (1479-1574) was the third of the Sikh Gurus. | |
| Friday 29 May |
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Shavuot (1st day) (Jewish)
Shavuot is a two-day festival that marks the time when the first harvest was taken to the Temple. Also known as the Festival of Weeks. Work is not permitted for the duration of the festival.
Shavuot is a Jewish celebration of Moses' descent from Mount Sinai with the Torah.
Ascension of Baha'u'llah (Baha'i)
Baha'is will suspend from work and school in the observance of the Ascension of Baha'u'llah, it is a Holy Day. It marks the day back in 1892, when Baha'u'llah passed away at the age of 75. |
| Sunday 31 May |
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Pentecost - Whitsun (Christian)
The Gift of the Holy Spirit is celebrated on this day (50 days after Easter). It is a happy festival and ministers often wear the colour red in their robes which acts as a symbol of the flames when the Holy Spirit came to earth.
Pentecost celebrates the gift of the Holy Spirit and is regarded as the birthday of the Christian church.
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| Other Events for April |
1 - National Day - Marshal Islands
3- National Day - Poland
9 - Europe Day - European Union
14- National Day Paraguay
17- Consitution Day - Norway
20- National Day - Cameroon
22 - National Day Yemen
24 Independence Day - Eritrea
25 Africa Day - Africa
25 National Day - Argentina
25 Independence Day - Jordan
26 National Day - Georgia
28 National Day - Azerbaijan
28 National Day - Ethiopia |
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