Employment Law and Mediation… A Compatible Match

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There are many different types of disputes that can arise in employment law, including ERISA benefit services, discrimination, wrongful termination, breach of contract, and even sexual harassment.  When these claims are initiated, the situation can be headed for costly and time-consuming litigation, which may not be the best scenario for either party.  The emergence of mediation in the employment law context has been growing over the last several years, offering valuable and successful venues for alternative dispute resolution for employers and employees around the country. 

Mediation is informal and confidential, which appeals to many individuals and groups involved in employment related disputes.  A neutral mediator works with both sides to get the facts of each party and lead the parties through a discussion of the primary issues in the dispute.  This approach is much less contentious than going through litigation, since the mediator doesn’t issue a decision about who is right or wrong.  Instead, the mediator works with the parties to help them generate their own solutions. 

The involved parties approach tends to create much more amenable results for all the individuals, since more creative opportunities are available when each party is working together civilly.  These solutions tend to be much more flexible than decisions handed down by a judge, and they also tend to better reflect the unique needs of each party.  In a sense, mediation can do a great deal of the work in clearing the air, allowing both parties to move past the tension and instead focus on generating fixes for the long term. 

It shouldn’t be surprising that parties going through employment mediation often reach conclusions much more quickly than courtrooms.  Scheduling is certainly a bonus benefit of mediation, but a trained mediator can guide the parties to a resolution in a much shorter span of time than it would take to go through litigation.  The entire process of mediation focuses on working together- rather than against one another- and the fair and efficient nature of this approach allows parties to focus only on critical issues. 

When parties feel as though they are being treated fairly and allowed to share their side of the story, it can help to relieve a lot of the tension associated with the initial arguments.  Mediation is incredibly beneficial in employment disputes because it helps to render a faster decision with input from all individuals.  Mediators can play a key role in leading employers and employees to resolutions.