Work Mediation Guide For HR Experts

What Is Work Mediation? 

Work mediation is an effective way of resolving any type of workplace dispute between two or more employees. It will help the employees address their concerns honestly with one another in a constructive safe space. So that they can once again work alongside one another in a professional manner. 

Workplace Mediator  

A workplace mediator will need to conduct your work mediation. They are totally independent. They cannot and do not take sides and are classed as a third-party neutral. Being impartial makes mediation such an attractive and successful option to address workplace disputes. As your mediator has nothing to do with your dispute and has no vested interest in the outcome.  

Their role is to assist all the employees to speak through the problems they have encountered with one another and to come up with a realistic workable solution so that these issues do not resurface. Who should your mediator be?  

• An external person. Someone who has nothing to do with the dispute, the employees, the company, business, organisation, the place of work, who have experienced these issues.  

• Specifically trained and accredited in workplace mediation.

• Have a professional background, degree level education (minimum).  

• A legal, HR background is advantageous but not essential.   

• Experience mediating workplace disputes.  

Work Mediation Process

The work mediation process is future focussed. Aiming not to dwell on the past, placing blame or making judgement about who was in the right or the wrong. Of course your workplace mediator will need to briefly discuss with you what has transpired previously and discuss past incidents which have caused the issues being complained about.  

By talking this all through it will help pinpoint what caused or triggered these incidents. Once the causes have been found. The mediator will quickly help the employees to shift their focus on how to prevent these incidents from reoccurring.  Rather than a deep analysis of the past.  

Work Mediation Fundamentals 

The main work mediation fundamentals are as follows.  

• Informality: It is informal, which is key. It helps employees to relax, be comfortable and allows them to open up. It is not yet another formal interview, investigation, grievance and disciplinary, (appeal) hearing. Not an employment tribunal hearing, no barristers or employment judge.  

• Flexibility: The whole process is entirely flexible. There are no rigid timeframes, rules or procedures. Nothing is cast in stone. A workplace grievance, disciplinary, investigation or an employment tribunal hearing is rigid and has to follow a set of rules and prescribed timetable.  

Work mediation can be whatever it needs to be. It can be a mixture of private and joint meetings as and when required. They can be as short or as long as they need to be. You can ask for a break at any time and take as long as you need.  

• User friendly: It can be conducted anywhere, the best place to conduct a work mediation is at the workplace, if it is sensible and conducive to do so. Away from any other employees. So, for example, at another site or in another building. Or a neutral venue, such as a nearby hotel, community centre, somewhere with office space. Or online mediation, via Zoom where the employees could be at home where they feel the most comfortable.  

• Voluntary nature: Like every type of mediation, it is employee-led. Therefore, the employees have to want to and agree to mediate.  They cannot be told “we have arranged a mediation for you, and you need to attend”. Therefore, every employee has the right to say they do not want to participate.  

For arguments sake if this was the case, any work mediation would be a waste of time. You get far more out of a process you have signed up to, rather than one you are compelled to do. Employees have to want to do it, not have to do it!  

• Confidentiality: Being totally confidential encourages employees to use mediation, especially when they are sceptical about whether it will be successful or not. The mediator cannot divulge anything the employees have told them in confidence with anyone else. To include their employer.  

This carries enormous weight which in turn allows employees to easily open up and be honest knowing that nothing can be used against them. This element of trust allows them to tell the mediator exactly what has happened. Who in turn can lead them to an acceptable solution.  

• Without prejudice: Workplace mediation like all other types of mediation is totally without prejudice. This means anything that is said or done at the mediation cannot be used in any future employment tribunal hearings.  

If a claim was ever made against the employer in the tribunal, it could only be disclosed that the employees tried mediation, and it was not successful. It would be very unlikely, but even if a work mediation took place and it was successful, but then later the working relationship broke down again.  

Leading to an employment tribunal claim, it would be reported that a mediation did take place, was initially successful but then the relationship broke down again. Who said or did what could not be referred to. Even if it was, the Employment Judge would class it as inadmissible evidence.  

• Reporting: A workplace mediator can only share with the referrer if an agreement was or was not reached. If an agreement is drawn up, they can only share this with the referrer if all the employees authorise them to do so.  

• Not legally binding: A workplace mediation unlike a civil landlord and tenant mediation is not legally binding. Employment law is extremely vast and complicated. Getting employees to be legally bound by what they agreed to would be complicated and an HR nightmare. The sheer time involved to get something like this signed off would take way too long.  

Equally from our vast experience in this field, employees would not feel comfortable being held to such rigidness. Instead, any agreements are made on trust and in good faith.   

What Can Work Mediation Achieve?   

Work mediation helps to clear the air. It allows employees to have their say, to be heard, finally understood, in the hope to get closure, and an assurance from each other there will be: 

• No more issues.  
• Or how to avoid any more issues. 
• Or more importantly how to address these issues with one another directly in a civil and professional manner. Should they reoccur. 
• The ultimate aim is to get them to professionally work alongside one another, once again.   

Mediation Repairs Working Relationships By 

• Getting the employees to actually talk to one another. It improves communication vastly. Several of the cases that we have mediated, the employees stopped communicating with one another a long time ago.  

It is not unusual for them to only talk to one another as a last resort. Whereby they would indirectly communicate through other employees, to include managers, or just by email (which in itself can make disputes worse, as emails can easily be misinterpreted).  

• Getting the employees to take ownership of their dispute and keeping them responsible for finding a way forward. They come up with a solution rather having a solution imposed upon them. This is so powerful as they are more likely to stick to something they have come up with and agreed to. Rather than being told “you will do this”! 

The Key Benefits Of Work Mediation

The benefits of workplace mediation are immense: 

• It removes, or at least reduces stress, headache and worry. No more having to walk on eggshells, no more dreading “what mood will they be in today?” From a HR mediation point of view the dread of yet another complaint, the daily email or phone call is no more! 

• A successful company, business or organisation is nothing without its employees. Mediation allows you to hold onto good, reliable hardworking employees. 

• Imagine no more lengthy, expensive and labour-intensive grievances, disciplinaries, appeals, investigations, never mind a tribunal claim.  

• No more costs of defending expensive employment tribunals, which can range from £4,500 – £36,000 plus VAT, which would work out to be £43,200.  

Disputes At Work – What Can Be Mediated?  

Disputes in the workplace between colleagues can arise over anything. Mediation is an effective process that can end any type of dispute quickly and discreetly. The typical work disputes we have mediated and can help you end once and for all are as follows;  

• Communication and miscommunication – words taken out of context, misunderstandings and misinterpreting what someone said or did. A style of working, gossip which creates trust issues. A clash of personalities over personal or professional choices.  

• Favouritism, bullies and victimisation – deliberately singling someone out, mistreating them, compared to how you treat others. Or the opposite treating someone much more favourably than others.  

• Racist behaviour – mistreating someone just because of the colour of their skin or religious beliefs. This could include overt racism and indirect racism, such as making off coloured remarks, jokes and so forth.  

• Discriminatory behaviour – this can be over a variety of things, mistreatment because of someone’s sex, age or disability.   

• Physical or mental disabilities – an employer is required by law to make reasonable adjustments for an employee who has advised their employer of any physical or mental disabilities that they have. All employees should be treated equally, so for example an employer is obliged to provide specific equipment for an employee who may require it. Such as a different kind of chair, workstation, PC equipment and so forth.  

• Sexual harassment – where an employee makes unwanted advances to another or treats them unfairly because they refused to enter into a romantic relationship with them. Or where they have broken up and make the ex-partners life difficult.  

• Performance issues – unable or refusing to undertake duties leading to low productivity, leading possibly to performance management and a capability route.  

• Hierarchies and power trips – senior managers and directors, in disputes amongst their equivalent in seniority (those at their level) or with junior managers and directors and direct reports.   Styles of management, micro managing, little if any support. Or where an employee is constantly undermining and being disrespectful to a senior.   

• Violence – or the threat of it, situations can get so heated that it can lead to physical altercations.  

• External people, incidents, situations, disputes outside of the workplace fuelling and creating disputes in the workplace.  

• Long term sickness – it is no secret when employees are stressed, facing some conflict in the workplace, a lot of them will just keep calling in sick, going on long term sick, be absent and or not punctual.  

• Formal processes – Grievance, disciplinary and appeals of the same leave employees very sore. The complainant feels wronged as much as the complained. And many of the recommendations that come out of such procedures are that the employees should try mediation.  

Conclusion 

Mediation can be used at any stage in a disagreement, but it’s best to start it as soon as possible. The earlier the disagreement is dealt with, the less chance there is of things getting worse. It is not going to make your employees the best of friends. Nor does it need to. Of course, if we can facilitate that somehow, we shall, but it is not necessary. Book your free consult now with Effective Dispute Solutions. Find further information about all things work mediation related at the The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, CIPD.