Ugly conversations and lost working days can be avoided by a swift and fair approach to workplace conflict.
Work-related stress accounts for 45pc of work absences due to ill health, claimed a report published by the Health and Safety Executive last year.The study, which used data gathered from GPs, found that difficult interpersonal relationships were the second greatest cause (26pc) for work-triggered mental ill health.
So how can small businesses reduce disagreements between workers and employee absence?
The best preventative step, says Jo Davis, employment partner at legal firm, BP Collins LLP, is to “develop a simple and effective grievance procedure, so employees know what to do if a problem arises and the issue doesn’t escalate without you, the business owner, knowing anything about it.”
Ms Davis also advises SME leaders to respond to disagreements quickly and get as accurate a picture of events as possible from the start.
Often overlooked, she adds, is the need to instruct employees to keep workplace issues off from social media. Failing to do this can escalate a row and cause damage to your firm’s reputation. Fairness is another issue to consider; as head of the company, are you investigating the conflict with an open mind?
For business owner Tom Kitchen, disagreements between staff at his PR and marketing company, Exposure Ninja, have been rare and readily resolved. His approach to one particular row – when an individual complained that another had made “a pretty inflammatory [comment] during a busy period” – was to immediately investigate what had actually occurred.
“We didn’t need to go with the your-word-versus-theirs approach,” he says. Because the firm uses screen-tracking software to check how projects of its remote workforce are developing, the management team was able to find screenshots of the conversation in question.
“By getting the two together in a private channel and presenting them with screenshots from their conversation, the issue was remarkably easy to fix,” he says.
However, not all conflicts are so easily resolved. For small businesses without HR departments, mediation may prove an effective solution for an ugly dispute. “The process involves an independent mediator helping two or more parties come to a mutual understanding as to how they can work better in the future,” explains Andrew Weir, employer services manager at HR company, Moorepay.
It’s vital to remember that the process is focused on finding a way forward, not establishing fault, he adds.
The process may encourage honesty and frankness from the parties involved and mediators ensure that discussions are structured, respectful and accurately recorded. “Although the outcomes aren’t legally binding, they do set the agreed rules of engagement for those involved and can help deal with similar situations in the future,” explains Mr Weir.
The costs of not taking swift and appropriate action when conflict occurs can be significant for SMEs. Ms Davis warns managers against being slow to act.
“It’s amazing how many companies let conflict fester, even though the effects can be so damaging,” she says. “Morale could take a nosedive, absences could soar, highly-skilled people could leave, and there can be huge cost to the company – in time and money – if an aggrieved individual decides to sue.”
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