Evalyn K. S. Inn, of Hawaii Audiology Consultants was our featured speaker for October. She spoke about workplace mediation and the need for a program to handle interpersonal disputes in the office to prevent escalation of a problem that may lead to violence.

WORKPLACE CONFLICT: An approach to a safe work environment –

• Conflict, in and of itself, is natural and many times, leads to some very creative and innovative approaches to problem solving. However, when it leads to hostility, it becomes a major problem in the workplace. How this is managed may define whether a work environment is happy, safe and productive.
• With technology more and more dictating how we work today, an inability to keep pace, or lack of will to keep pace can lead to many problems – the least of which is workplace violence.
• Hawaii felt that it was immune to the problems of workplace violence that seemed to be popping out of nowhere on the mainland. We sadly found that we were just as vulnerable and now must begin to face up to solving the problems in our workplace.

• Since the Xerox incident, many businesses have put in a program to respond to violence and to set protocols for its employees. Unfortunately, the emphasis is on how to react to the problems of violence rather than how to work to improve the work environment and the interpersonal relationships that need mending so as to avert violence.
• A mediation program for the handling of employees’ disputes has proven to be an effective program. Many businesses on the mainland - corporate 500 companies, the federal government, etc., all have programs that are in place that are working. Some Hawaii businesses have instituted training in mediation skills for its managers but do not have a mediation program in place. Many union contracts now contain a clause for the use of arbitration or mediation when a grievance arises. This however, still does not cover the non-grievance problems – the interpersonal problems that need solving.
• When you have a tense situation between two employees, supervisor and employee, supervisor and supervisor, etc., who will determine what is happening? What if the problem is a non-grievable, non-EEO, non-sexual harrassment?

WORKPLACE MEDIATION: A recognition that interpersonal difficulties, if allowed to fester, will inevitably lead to a more stressful environment, and may in some cases lead to violence. Some of the steps that management may take to alleviate this problem –

• A recognition that the problem exists.
• A clearance from the union(s) to proceed with a program to handle non-grievance problems.
• A buy-in from management. Without support, the program will fail.
• Train all managers and middle management in the techniques and skills of mediation. This will allow for the handling of minor problems by management itself and the referral to outside mediation for the more difficult problems.
• An in-take coordinator (trained in mediation) to take referrals and to decide if the problem goes to mediation.
• A recognition that this does not supplant EEO or harassment cases.
• An agreement to either train employees to become mediators or to send the cases out to a community mediation center, with the company picking up the fee for mediation. This external mediation helps to ensure neutrality of the mediators, and to build trust that the company is working to resolve problems in the best possible way.
• The mediation will be done on work time (employee will be released from work and will not be charged sick or annual leave time.)
• The mediation will be confidential – management may not ask for the results of the mediation.

LISTENING CHECKLIST: With practice, you can make your listening skills more effective. After a conversation, ask yourself the following questions –

• Did my mind wander? You must realize that your mind has a need to be active and that a piece of information, an offhand remark, even a facial expression can cause your mind to go off in a completely different direction. To keep your mind on the subject at hand, compose questions about what is being said.
• Am I being judgmental? Is my listening affected? Judgments and assumptions can cause your listening to become biased. This causes you to stop listening to what is actually being said. Reserve your judgments and evaluations until after the speaker has finished.
• Am I thinking about what I will say next? This inhibits attentive listening. Wait until the speaker has finished before formulating your response.
• Do I pay attention to the whole message? A great deal of communication is lost if you pay attention to only what is being said. People communicate with their bodies, and not just their voices.
• Do my face and posture communicate impartiality and openness? Just as you are able to interpret underlying information from body language, so too can the speaker interpret the emotional state and mind-set of the listener. Pay attention to your non-verbal behavior.

DIFFICULT BEHAVIOR: Difficult behavior occurs when people are emotionally involved. They cannot "hear" what someone else is saying as emotions block communication. Communication is poor or non-existent. How do deal with it? What do you do to break the "impasse"? Here are several approaches –

• Deal with misperceptions – i.e., inaccurate or inadequate information. Ask how it happened, why he/she feels that way….
• Confront – helping people see that their "assumptions" aren’t working. You can say, "You seem to expect the other party will agree with your position yet you are not willing to give and take. You appear to have a difficult time seeing the "other" side of the picture. Is this a fair and accurate statement?"
• Save face – You can say, " I know that it is difficult for you not to appear to be giving up. How about if we say that since other people have considered this possibility, you are willing to do it yourself and that you are willing to make some changes because you are willing to work towards a better atmosphere…"
• Meet separately with the disputants – You can say, "What changes do you want to see happen? Will this help to make some changes? What can you do from your side to help make things better? Sounds like you’re too angry to listen right now. We can’t proceed unless each person is courteous and doesn’t interrupt. Can we work on this premise – that we will speak civilly and not interrupt? We will not raise our voice or use unkind words."