As another Mediation Awareness Week comes around, I have been reflecting on the growing number of mediation inquiries we are getting at Worklogic and the increase in the number of mediations we are conducting.
Workplace mediation is very practical and effective tool to allow your employees to air and resolve workplace conflict and re-build working relationships. If unacceptable behaviour is ignored, it can damage morale, reduce productivity and lead to increased costs and legal issues for your organisation.
This increase in mediation requests is happening at a time when Australian workplaces are experiencing an escalation in formal disputes at the Fair Work Commission.
It’s not a coincidence that workplaces are recognising the benefits of mediation.
Mediation can be used in a variety of ways:
- early on when conflict first rears its head between employees;
- post an investigation to restore the relationship between the parties;
- when an employee is returning to the workplace (after being on Workcover or after being stood down);
- a variation of mediation is being used within the restorative practice space to help maintain relationships and build trust.
A case study:
I recently conducted a mediation using restorative processes to assist three team members and their manager.
The three team members had made a joint complaint regarding ongoing issues with their manager. This included concerns regarding:
- the way the manager communicated;
- the lack of strategic vision;
- lack of professional development being provided;
- scarcity of team meetings and one-on-ones;
- lack of clarity, direction and acknowledgement.
The team had recently lost a team member who had resigned due to the lack of management he had been receiving, and the remaining three team members were on the verge of resigning when they made the complaint.
An alternative approach:
- Until recently most workplaces would have managed this type of complaint by conducting an investigation. However, an investigation, even if all allegations had been sustained, would not have led to a dismissal of the manager – an outcome may have provided for some training or coaching for the manager, but what it would have done is further erode relationships and trust within the team? Instead, I met with each of the three team members and the manager, one-on-one, to understand what each of their concerns were.
- I brought them all together where a safe and respectful space was created to enable each of them to share their perspectives, listen to one another and to understand and reflect on how their actions might affect each other.
- As a team they worked together on where they wanted to get to: and in so doing they were helping to build collaboration, connection and trust.
- After an agreement is made about where they want to go , we then focused on how they were going to do that.
This practical approach helps to repair harm, build stronger relationships and trust.
The result. The team have remained intact and are working together healthier than before.
Conclusion:
Bringing parties together through mediation can do more than resolve a complaint: it can create the conditions for genuine understanding, accountability and lasting change. This case demonstrates the value of intervening early and choosing a process that repairs relationships rather than deepens division.
During Mediation Awareness Week, it is timely for workplaces to consider mediation and restorative practice not simply as alternatives to investigation, but as practical tools for rebuilding trust, strengthening teams and creating healthier workplaces.
Mediation Awareness Week runs annually, during the second week of November. Worklogic has a dedicated mediation team who are experienced in delivering a range of facilitated discussions, restorative practice and are nationally accredited advanced mediators.
Get in touch if you would like to hear more about the process of mediation and whether it’s the best option for your organisation.