Business owners in the SME sector
are being urged to resolve workplace disputes through mediation
where possible, rather than heading straight for an employment
tribunal. ACAS, the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service,
has released the advice, which is based on research that shows
mediation as a last resort for many small business owners.
The report showed that 52 percent of small business owners surveyed
believed that mediation was suited only to large companies. The
surveyed business owners did believe mediation was a valuable
tool however, with 63 percent believing that a more widespread
use of mediation would reduce the number of employment tribunal
claims.
The ACAS revised code of practice, however, has come under scrutiny,
with a number of bodies suggesting that the new process could
possibly have a negative effect on small businesses. The code
is shorter, according to the Forum of Private Businesses, but
linguistically is no less complex, leaving owners of SMEs potentially
unsure of where they stand.
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