Back to Basics This course focuses on how employers can resolve employment disputes. It starts with the basics-the importance of listening and communicating with employees and responding to their concerns. It continues with an explanation of how employers can develop prevention programs-ways to ensure that complaints can be resolved quickly before they become intractable problems. Then, the more formal processes of resolving disputes through alternative means of dispute resolution are covered.

Reducing Costs Litigation costs and the unpredictability of litigation claims have forced organizations to become highly proactive in their efforts to prevent and resolve employment disputes. This concentrated and highly beneficial one and one-half day course will guide organizations through the full range of legal and practical considerations that must be understood and managed in order to resolve workplace disputes long before they have an opportunity to become multi-million dollar verdicts.

New Management Response A fundamental shift has occurred in how organizations manage conflict in the workplace. More than ever before, organizations are taking a highly reactive, swift resolution approach to dealing with a wide range of employment disputes-including those arising out of harassment, violence, hiring and firing, discrimination, whistleblowing, medical testing, promotions, pay, equal employment, retaliation, investigations, and a vast spectrum of other key daily workplace matters. However, resolving disputes can be a complex process, and has the potential to create a new set of problems if improperly managed. In short, without clear information and training, the cure could be as harmful as the ailment.

Best Practices/Internal Investigations An expert faculty will guide you through corporate best practices in the areas of mediation, dispute resolutions, arbitration and investigation procedures. Youšll learn how to structure a dispute resolution program that addresses the many legal problems and issues arising in this controversial area. You’ll also learn how to implement the many variations of ADR available, how to decide what’s best for your organization, and how to implement early and definitive intervention to minimize disputes and maximize the opportunity for efficient, enduring resolutions.

COURSE CURRICULUM

1. How to Investigate & Resolve Employment Disputes
   1. Importance of the first-line supervisor
   2. Who should investigate?
   3. Relationship to ADR
   4. Following grievance & discipline procedures
   5. How to investigate as part of a larger program of dispute resolution
   6. Keeping privacy & business needs in balance
   7. Potential traps & pitfalls
   8. Specific privacy implications of investigations
   9. Privacy & slander considerations
   10. When is it too late to investigate a dispute?
   11. Employee vs. employee-protecting each individual’s rights throughout the process
   12. Confidentiality of complaints and records
   13. Issues regarding witnesses
   14. Special concerns & issues in sexual harassment investigations & in whistle-blowing situations
   15. Issues & policies regarding evidence
   16. Appropriate levels of discipline-how they are determined
   17. The final report
2. Dispute Resolution Is Here-ADR in the Workplace: What are the Options?
   1. Americans with Disabilities Act and other statutory preferences for ADR
   2. Mediation as the clear winner in many situations
   3. Mandatory & non-mandatory mediation
   4. Mandatory & non-mandatory arbitration
   5. What works? Corporate experience with lawsuit reduction
3. Techniques for Implementing Resolution Techniques/From Recruitment Through Retirement
   1. Forms and strategies
   2. Educating the workforce
   3. The sequence of different resolution techniques
4. When can you compel arbitration? When can you keep employees from going to court? The EEOC?
   1. Recent judicial developments and practice under the Federal Arbitration Act.
   2. Requiring mediation before or after an employee files a lawsuit.
5. Legal Considerations
   1. When can you compel arbitration?
   2. Can you keep employees from going to court? to the EEOC?
   3. Recent judicial developments & practice under the Federal Arbitration Act
   4. Requiring mediation before or after an employee files a lawsuit
   5. Agreements to arbitrate & agreements to mediate
   6. Rights & responsibilities created by agreements
   7. Union consequences
   8. ADR in the union setting after Wright
   9. ADR in the class action context
   10. Strategy considerations
6. Dealing With Government Agencies
   1. The views of the EEOC, the National Labor Relations Board, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs
   2. Using ADR in disputes with the Government
7. The Internal Dispute Resolution Program
   1. Defined policies
   2. Clear & enforced discipline & grievance procedures
   3. Who is involved?
   4. Employee forums for airing disputes
   5. Communicating policies and procedures
   6. Assembling an on-going review system
   7. Handbooks
   8. When to go “outside” for resolutions
   9. Drafting ADR provisions and clauses in internal documents