Workplace Mediation
Restore working relationships with our expert mediation service.
Conflict in the workplace is common. Most of the time things can be sorted out with a chat, but when they can’t, they can soon take a turn for the worse: communication breaks down, other people get drawn in, and what begins as a difference of opinion can quickly become a significant problem for your organisation.
Disputes can occur at all levels: with colleagues, managers, within teams, and even between people several management levels apart. Line managers are often too close to the dispute to get involved and HR practitioners can often have a conflict of interest, or may not be trusted by employees to maintain absolute confidentiality.
Workplace mediation is a quick, cost-effective, and private method of resolving disputes, saving the stresses and costs of formal action, minimising absenteeism, and conforming to current best practice. It focuses on all parties getting what they want from their working relationships with others, and on moving forwards amicably with an agreement that everyone involved has contributed towards.
UK Mediation offers an unrivalled workplace mediation process, using some of the most accomplished and experienced mediators in the field, and with a simple process expertly co-ordinated by our dedicated case managers. We can provide a mediator within five days of receiving your referral, a mediation summary within 48 hours of the mediation day, and a follow-up with the participants four weeks later. We offer a one-day workplace mediation process for up to three people, and team mediation for disputes with four or more people. Find out more about team mediation here.
Call 0800 772 0778
to speak to one of our experts and find out more about the best mediation for you.
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For all the different ways to contact UK Mediation or to arrange a free consultation click here.
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If you’d like us to give you a call to discuss workplace mediation in more detail click here to request a call back.
How does workplace mediation work?
Referring a case
After getting in touch with UK Mediation, one of our case managers will send you a Workplace Mediation Referral Form. This needs to be filled out with details of the dispute and of the participants, and returned to us. A date can then be arranged (one day is suitable for 2 or 3 parties) and a signed Booking Form will confirm the mediation case.
Prior to the mediation
Before the day of the mediation, your case manager will liaise with you to organise the logistics of the mediation. This will include timings, contact information, venue arrangements for face-to-face cases or, if it’s online, all of the links and information to join the sessions.
Individual meetings
On the day of the mediation, the mediator will meet with each party in private individual sessions. These meetings usually last for about 1½ hours each. The purpose of these meetings is to discuss the ongoing issues, as well as what is required – from their point of view – to end the dispute.
After the individual meetings
If the parties want to proceed, the mediator will invite them into a joint session in the afternoon. If the mediator decides that it would not be productive to have them in the same room, then he or she may instead “shuttle” between them. It is for this reason why we ask you to arrange two rooms for a face-to-face mediation.
The joint meeting
Getting parties together in the same meeting allows for a comprehensive airing of views and offers a chance to speak directly to one another. The aim of the joint session is to discuss how they believe they have arrived at the current situation, and to try and agree on how to improve their relationship. The meeting usually lasts for half a day.
The mediation agreement
The agreement is a joint plan of action decided upon by the participants, with no input from the mediator. When an agreement is reached during the joint session, the mediator can offer to draft this in a written or typed form and give it to the parties. The agreement is formed in good faith and is not legally binding.
Feeding back to the referrer
The next working day, UK Mediation will provide you with a Mediation Summary. And, while the participants may not want to share all of the details, we will always let you know whether the mediation went ahead and whether it was successful. If parties consent to sharing, you will also see the agreement points that the parties came up with.
Follow-up and review
The case manager will follow up the situation after an agreed period by contacting each party confidentially. This usually takes place via email and is intended to assess if the agreement is working and if any further input is needed from the mediator. This is then fed back to you, providing consent is given to share.
See ‘Workplace Mediation in Action’ with our free webinar!
“UK Mediation has provided mediation services and training as part of the Council’s approach to resolving workplace conflict. This has been very successful and I would recommend them to other organisations wanting to do the same.”Karen Childs, HR Service Managerread more testimonials
Bassetlaw District Council
