City chosen to pilot mediation service for SMEs

MANCHESTER has been picked by the government to pilot a new mediation system to tackle disputes in the work place.

The aim of the pilots there and in Cambridge is to stem the rising tide of claims being brought to industrial tribunal, which are costly to small businesses, not only financially, but in time too.

In 2010-11 there were 218,000 tribunal claims, a surge of 44% since 2008-09. Each business spends nearly £4,000 per claim on average defending itself. There is an additional average cost of a £1,900 to the taxpayer per claim.

Employment relations minister Ed Davey announced the pilot, which will see the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills fund mediation training for employees from a group of 24 SMEs in each of the pilot areas later this year.

Mr Davey said: ““We have always said that employment tribunals should be a last resort for resolving workplace disputes. That is why last year we announced a series of measures which offer alternatives when dealing with such problems.

“Mediation offers an informal method of dispute resolution and can be used at the point when problems first arise in the workplace. For both employers and employees it can mean avoiding the need for formal discipline and grievance procedures. And it can also mean avoiding the time-consuming, complex and often stressful employment tribunal process.

“We want to help employers and employees to help themselves. In particular our consultations showed SMEs are often not aware of the benefits that mediation can bring for both parties. This pilot will directly target this group, help to raise awareness of the benefits and reduce the burden on the tribunal system.”

The pilot schemes will run for 12 months and, if successful, the government will consider introducing them into other areas of England, Scotland and Wales.

An open tender to deliver the mediation training for prospective candidates is can be seen at http://www.contractsfinder.co.uk