Employment Act and Mediation

Mediation is taking on a more important role in UK workplaces. Following the Gibbons Review (PDF, 589.7 kb) (2007), a new Employment Act came into force in April 2009. The changes have created a more flexible system for employers and employees to deal with conflict situations at work and it heralds a more prominent role for mediation across the United Kingdom.

The system now emphasises the importance of early dispute resolution, for example through workplace mediation. Employers are encouraged to offer informal dispute resolution mechanisms either through the provision of internal or independent mediation.

The benefits of the revised system include a simpler and less prescriptive way of resolving workplace conflict, and it offers greater flexibility to informally resolve conflicts at work. The hope is that this will result in cost and time savings and that it will also reduce the stress of going through an Employment Tribunal.

Consensio is hosting a number of complimentary seminars to explore the numerous benefits of embedding mediation into UK organisations. Please click on introductory workshops in our training section for further details.