How does workplace mediation work?

Following the introduction of our workplace mediation service in April, we thought it might be a good idea to explain what exactly workplace mediation is, and how it can help businesses with their human resources issues.


A broad definition of workplace mediation is,“a co-operative way of resolving difficult situations in the workplace, ending in a mutually acceptable outcome”, which sounds nice, but what does this actually mean in practice?

Workplace mediation often acts as an alternative or supplement to formal proceedings, such as grievance hearings, and can address some of the more sensitive elements of a problem effectively.

Although there is no substitute for formal proceedings where guidelines or legal responsibilities come into play, there are some areas where workplace mediation is preferable. Take for example a dispute between two team members in an organisation; a grievance hearing might be able to make a decision on who is the wrong, and set the stage for a disciplinary action if necessary, but what about when the two team members have to come back to work as colleagues and operate together in light of the earlier proceedings?

This is where workplace mediation can help.

There is also scope for workplace mediation where formal situations just don’t apply. Disagreements between stakeholders outside of the organisation or between upper management and decision makers are examples of these.

Organic hr’s mediators are accredited by the TCM group, and as such the mediation process we deploy abides by the following characteristics:

As well as these characteristics, the ‘FAIR Framework’ is the dispute resolution process that TCM mediators also abide by, and is what underpins all mediation activities. An interactive version of which can be found on the TCM group site here.

If you have any issues which you think workplace mediation could help with, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us for a confidential, no-pressure chat.

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