Workplace Dispute and Resolution

¶ … marketplace, employers recognize that success requires attracting a talented workforce. Talent comes from all sources. Doing more than simply accommodating changing demographics, successful organizations have come to value the contributions that people from differing backgrounds bring to the workplace. To recruit and maintain a diverse workforce, an employer must have a plan for creating a work environment that makes all of its employees feel welcome."

In corporate settings, demographics of the organization play a large part in the workings of that organization.

Large corporate settings by and large indicate hierarchies and bureaucracy and, in many cases, people within the organization can feel that their diverse viewpoints, needs and backgrounds are stifled or simply not heard.

Also, problems of stereotyping, sexism, racism, and lack of upward mobility are problems that affect many members of a diverse workforce.

These problems often breed inefficiency in the workplace and at times, workplace conflict.

In particular, in many cases, masculine and feminine stereotypes are part of particular roles and occupations within a corporate setting.

Fortunately, most employers have begun to recognize the need to address this new face of the workplace. In addition to making strides to diversify the workplace, they have also found ways to ameliorate workplace disputes caused by the new diversity in the workplace. As Stephen Robbins points out in his book Organization Behavior, "workplace diversity has become an important issue in management."

He goes on to explain:

The ability to predict, explain and control organizational behavior has never been more important in management. A quick look at a few of the dramatic changes in organizations supports this claim. For instance,... there are more women and minoorities in the workplace, and global competition is forcing managers to become more flexible and deal with paid chanmge and innovation."

Managers must learn how to deal with diversity by managing team conflict. The requirements for managing team conflict are Willingness to listen and to focus on the problem, rather than on the person

Willingness to define the problem

Willingness to allow some anger and hostility to surface during the discussion

Willingness to commit to decisions

Willingness to accept that one might be a part of the problem and willingness to try to change behavior.

Women in the workplace affect their workplace in different ways than men and managers must deal with the conflicts that result from such diversity in the workplace.

Accordingly, many women with children work for corporations that have installed on-site child care facilities.

These facilities allow women to work at the office with the peace of mind that their children are being cared for during the day in their own workplace. Women can then even visit their children during the day.

Second, technological innovations have allowed corporations to provide for telecommuting for caretakers, so that they may work from home part of the workweek.

Both of these changes are relatively new in the corporate workplace, and would have been unthinkable at most corporations even twenty or thirty years ago.

They are also, most significantly are examples of management listening to problems and conflicts in the workplace, defining the problem, and instituting solutions.

Without such solutions, conflicts would arise in the workplace as family-oriented employees' productivity declined and employees' willingness to be succomb to management demands declined.

One method of dealing with such inevitable conflict is as follows:

member surfaces the problem for discussion. Team members define the problem as each sees it, looking for common interpretations.

Each member speaks to how others on the team contribute to the problem.

Each member speaks to how he or she contributes to the problem.

Each member identifies the behavior change needed and makes a commitment to a "first step."

Follow-up occurs on a regular basis with praise for the effort made.

Management and employees would therefore need to admit to their respective contributions to a lack of productivity and teamwork, and work together to produce solutions whereby employees could balance work life and family obligations.

First steps" of cooperation and compromise would need to be identified, and eventually employees' goals of balancing work and home life could be met by management implementing such solutions as child care facilities on-site and telecommuting options.

Such gradually implemented solutions are key to managing team conflict. As one commentator advises: "Don't come to consensus too quickly.

Management and employees often] are so afraid of conflict that they come to consensus on a particular point that is inappropriate or incorrect. This 'dumbing down' process hurts the quality of the team's performance...."