Bullying, harassment, discrimination, or behaviour
in the workplace that is outside the Respectful
Workplace Policy?

Take the right step.

Conflict Management Spectrum of
Dispute Resolution 

1. Talk to the person directly
Try talking to the other person first. Ask them to please stop the behavior. If this does not change the behavior. Talk to your supervisor or HR about going to the next step.

2. Coaching / Training
Request Conflict Management Training/Coaching or Communication Skills training to help you get heard without making the situation worse.

3. Facilitated Conversation by Supervisor or 3rd Party
Sometimes someone else from inside the company can help you have a conversation that helps you resolve the issues in a respectful way.

4. Internal Investigation to look into it
If the matter still does not resolve, check with your union representative, your human resources department (if you have one), and read your policies/procedures to see what your options are regarding filing a complaint in a more formal way. Your employer will first look into it themselves and this sometimes resolves it. The employer might choose to take one of the following steps:

5. Assessment:
If they think something is happening but they're not sure of the exact details or how wide spread it is, they may choose an assessment. Employers may do a fairness assessment, workplace culture assessment, conflict management system assessment, scope assessment, etc. This helps the employer decide how to resolve the issues. This also sometimes leads to a larger process to restore peace, safety and productivity to the workplace through a Restorative Workplace Process. 

6. Facilitated Conversation:
If the Parties are having difficulties but they think it might be able to be resolved if they just talk it out with the help of a neutral third party, an externally facilitated conversation may be the right choice to resolve the issue.
 
7. Mediation:
When the Parties are having difficulties and they need a plan about how to move forward, mediation is a great option. When the employer believes that the parties will make good decisions about how to move forward without employer involvement, this works well. The process is voluntary and confidential. The Memorandum of Understanding Plan the parties develop, will be mutually agreed to causing increased commitment to the plan. It has a success rate on average of approximately 80%.
 
8. An External Workplace Investigative Process:
The employer has a responsibility to provide a safe workplace. If there is a complaint of bullying, harassment, violence or discrimination of any sort, choose an external workplace investigative process. The Workplace Investigative Consultant can provide a report including background information, findings of fact, analysis, conclusions and recommendations. Workplace Investigators work from a trauma informed lens.

9. Arbitration, Adjudication or Litigation
Should all of the above not resolve the issues which is rare, arbitration, adjudication or litigation are options.
 
 
 
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