Arbitration and Meditation

Read the following articles and use the final project case study transcripts to help you answer the discussion question.

Describe 1 to 2 benefits and 1 to 2 risks of each of the three alternative dispute resolution methods: negotiations, mediation, and arbitration between the stakeholders. Support your description with specific examples.

Article: Summary of Major Laws of the Department of Labor “The
Department of Labor (DOL) administers and enforces more than 180
federal laws.” This article provides a brief description of many of
DOL’s principal statutes most commonly applicable to businesses, job
seekers, workers, retirees, contractors, and grantees.

Library Article: Challenge of Contract Provisions a No-Go for Nova Scotia Engineer This
article chronicles the story about a fired employee’s claim that his
employment contract was void because of a non-compliant severance
provision and an inaccurate job description.

Library Article: The Rise of the Workplace Ombudsman “One
of the mechanisms for internal conflict resolution has been an
ombudsman. This is a person (or office) that oversees or assists with
the investigation and resolution of workplace complaints.” This article
discusses how the rise of the workforce ombudsman came to prominence.

Module Eight focuses on the last of the four critical mindsets for having positive performance conversations—be clear. Be clear is concerned with accountability by establishing who owns the problem and who is responsible for resolving it. Establishing problem ownership allows for an open and clear conversation to take place between the employee and the manager. This means employees are able to control their outcomes as opposed to their managers determining the outcomes for them. The point here is to foster ownership instead of holding the employee accountable. Accountability means having to answer for one’s actions. The idea is compelling; if an employee knows that she will have to explain her actions to another person and that her actions will be rewarded or punished accordingly, typically she will make an effort to act better. However, accountability is an approach that is riddled with blame and an environment built on blame does not foster engagement and positive performance.

Creating a culture of ownership shifts the conversations from directive to collaborative. When employees own their work, they become accountable for it and perform more efficiently. The table below shows the shift in mindset from accountability to ownership.

From Accountability	To Ownership
Blame	Responsibility
Doing the job	Achieving results
Externalizing the cause	Internalizing the need to change
Working in silos	Collaborating with others
Telling others what to do	Engaging hearts and minds
Waiting for direction	Initiating change
Following along	Leading the way

Table 8.1: A Culture of Ownership

(Green, 2013)

Part of establishing a culture of ownership is communicating clear expectations. Often, the employee did not understand the performance expectation or the manager was not clear. Ensuring the communication was clear from the beginning can help alleviate the possibility of conflict later. Being clear and confirming the expectation with the employee often will help the employee stay on track.

Giving the employee a sense of ownership can be done in many ways. First, ensuring the employee is part of the solution means informing the employee of big picture ideas and organizational goals. Also, giving the employee ample opportunity to own their project or department can also create buy-in needed for an ownership mentality. Discussing performance with the employee often is also critical for a culture of ownership.

When a breakdown in communication among employees or between a manager and employee occurs, a resolution technique needs to be applied. In these instances, an option to resolve the conflict is to use alternative dispute resolution. Mediation is a technique that employs a third party to enter the conversation and try and get each party to acknowledge the other’s viewpoint and begin conversation again. Arbitration is a legally binding decision made by a third party over the conflict. See the table below for specifics on mediation versus arbitration.

Figure 8.1

(Mainstreet Organization of Realtors [MORe], n.d.)

Conflict with employees can sometimes lead to performance management and termination. Many labor laws govern the work environment, so being aware of what managers can and cannot do within the confines of the law is important. The U.S. Department of Labor lists and defines the most common labor laws. For example, the Fair Labor Standards Act governs wages and hours worked as well as fair working conditions. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission governs Title VII, which prohibits discrimination (of a protected class) in employment decisions. These are just a couple of pertinent laws that you should be aware of and understand. Before taking any employment action, partner with your human resource or environmental law group.

Reference

Green, M. E. (2013). Painless performance conversations: A practical approach to critical day-to-day workplace discussions. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. Mainstreet Organization of Realtors. (n.d.). Mediation vs. arbitration comparison. Succeed With More. Retrieved from https://www.seedwithmore.com/DisputeResolution/Pages/Arbitration-Vs-Mediation-Comparison.aspx