Corporate (english)
Workshop IV: “Conflict settlement”
Participants
- SCHOTT AG Alzenau
- SCHOTT AG Mainz
- SCHOTT AG Grünenplan
- SCHOTT AG Landshut
- SCHOTT Industrial Glass (UK)
- Member of EMCEF
- October 9, 2008
- SCHOTT AG, Mainz
- Procedure in case of conflict at the level of works council
- Setting standards with the employer
- Common information cascade for works council developed,
- topic should be pursued.
Types of possible conflicts
- Interpersonal
- Factual / issue-related
- Conflict of goals
- Conflict of competence / responsibility
- Political conflict
- Conflict between countries and cultures
- Conflict between employer and employee
- Conflict of resources
- Conflict of interests
- Conflicts originating from misunderstandings
- Conflicts between groups of employees
- Personal conflicts
Possible consequence of unsolved conflict?
- Unsolved conflict generates “new” conflicts
- Complicates the solution of future conflicts
- Unsolved conflict escalates and hampers (own) solution
- Find conflict-free level
- Factual level (for personal conflicts)
- Personal level (for factual conflicts)
- Call a mediator in
Example: conflict due to downsizin
Prior to:
- Personal conflicts
- employee vs. employee
- employer vs. employee
- Classic conflict
- employer vs. employee (general)
- Conflict of resources (workplace-related)
- Conflict of interests
- employer vs. Works Council
- Conflict caused by misunderstandings
- same conflict situation
(unsolvable conflict)
- unsolved conflicts => same conflict situation
- solved conflicts => contribution to solution
- employer vs. employee/Works Council
- Works Council plays an important role,
->may act as mediator!
How should the Works Council proceed?
- Analyses (type of conflict / who is involved)
- Hear the conflicting parties in one-to-one interviews
- Opinion forming in Works Council
- laws, rules, regulations?
- Works Council or mediator required?
- Determine course of action, define aim
- One-to-one interviews with conflicting parties (explain approach of mediating party)
Check acceptability of Works Council as mediator - Bring the conflicting parties together
- work out an approach to solution
- documentation
- Focus conflicting parties on solution finding
- Observation phase
- Follow up and final discussion
- Publish documentation when indicated
Prevention?!
- Confidence building
- Openness
- Willingness to solve conflicts
- Thinking ahead / possible new conflict?
- Experiments? role reversal (mentally)
- Exchange of experiences
- Conflict manager
- Speediness
- Prioritization (thematic)
- De-escalation management
- Presence
Plan of action for dealing with conflicts within the EF
- Information (active)
- Who? Whom? When?
- Obtain declaration of solidarity
- (avoidance of new, internal conflicts)
- Involve conflict manager
- Prioritization
- Contact to conflicting parties
- see: “How should the Works Council proceed?“
- Final documentation
- Exchange of information (active)
Information cascade EF (during/after conflicts)
