News

Items which have previously appeared on this news page can now be found in our Archive

AGM 2009

Full details of this years AGM on the 17th February are downloadable in the members section. It will take place at ICON in Leeds.

Costs Costs Costs

The report of Lord Justice Jackson on litigation costs was published in January. He says that mediation has a vital role to play in reducing the costs of disputes by encouraging the early settlement of cases. He says it is a culture change amongst lawyers not a rule change that is needed. Full commentary.

Tribute to Winx

John Winkworth Smith has decided to hang up his mediation boots so to speak. He is a founding member of ANM and has over the years been a constant source of support and enthusiasm for all things mediation.

His involvement with Consensus Mediation thankfully continues.

We all at ANM wish him well and we shall miss his infectious sense of humour and celebral interjections at the 2010 summer school in Malham.

Northern Solutions E’zine

- due Spring 2010

News in Brief

- due Spring 2010

Summer School 2009

The 11th annual ANM summer school took place in Malham in June 2009. Twenty-two members enjoyed the company of Lawrence Kerschen QC and actor Peter Birch. This year's theme was centred on the use of dialogue in mediation.

National Mediation Helpline - fee increase 1 April 2009

The NMH has increased it's fee levels for mediators by £100. Each party will now pay £300 plus VAT for a mediation where the dispute is valued between £5,000 and £15,000 and £425 plus VAT between £15,000 and £50,000. The rates for small claims and for larger claims above £50,000 remain the same. ANM remains committed to encouraging the use of the scheme particularly for smaller less complex disputes.

Mediation Survey Results - Summer 2009

Survey details available at the Survey Monkey website.

Real help now with disputes at work from 1st April 2009

Resolving problems at work should now be easier for people and businesses, Employment Relations Minister Pat McFadden announced on the 3rd April. A new streamlined process for resolving disciplinary and grievance issues came into effect. The central aim of this is to reduce the number of people going to employment tribunals and simplify the system for dealing with workplace disputes.

Minister for Employment Relations, Pat McFadden said: "Tribunals can be costly, time-consuming and draining for people and businesses alike. "We have changed the rules so that employers and employees will have greater flexibility to deal with grievances and disciplinary issues at work at the earliest opportunity. Acas' expanded helpline and conciliation services will play a key role in delivering this".

Employees and employers will be able to call the Acas helpline for impartial and confidential advice on the options available for resolving workplace problems. They will also be able to access a free early conciliation service for certain types of cases, with the aim to reduce the need for people to enter into full tribunal procedures.

Following the passage of the Employment Act 2008, a number of obligations on employers and employees when dealing with workplace issues have now been removed. The previous system, which instructed employers to follow a mandatory three-step system in resolving disputes, will be dismantled and employers will instead develop systems which best suit their workplace. Acas has developed a statutory code of practice to set out best practice guidelines for employers.

Justice Minister Bridget Prentice said: "We welcome these new changes and will be monitoring their impact on the Employment Tribunal system closely. The aim is that, where possible, it will be easier - and quicker - for both employees and employers to resolve their disputes in the workplace, without needing to escalate them to the Employment Tribunal. However, even where this is not possible it will still mean a quicker and more streamlined approach for those claims that do end up at the tribunal."

Katja Hall, Employment Policy Director at the CBI said: "CBI members attached great importance to this review and are pleased that the new regulations place substance rather than procedure back at the heart of resolving workplace disputes. This, and the focus on addressing problems at work early, will increase the number of workers who stay in their jobs, have a positive impact on industrial relations and can reduce costs for all parties."

For details of the regulatory procedures that apply until 6 April and for those which apply from 6 April go to: http://www.direct.gov.uk/resolvingdisputes and http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/resolvingdisputes. For details of the transitional arrangements that will apply go to http://www.berr.gov.uk/resolvingdisputes.

Acas can now step in earlier, their helpline number is 08457 47 47 47 and is open 0800 - 2000 Mon to Fri and 0900 - 1300 on Sat. Acas' early conciliation service can be accessed by calling the helpline. Their website is at http://www.acas.org.uk/drr and the Acas Code of Practice can be accessed at: http://www.acas.org.uk/dgcode2009.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development has useful guidance for employers on its website; go to http://www.cipd.co.uk/subjects and search for ‘mediation’.

The Association of Northern Mediators has independent workplace mediators available throughout the north. The ANM Employment and Workplace Mediation Group is co-ordinated by Jan Scrine, Associate Director of Consensus Mediation: she commented “Mediation is already a useful option for resolving contractual employment matters; the recognition of its place in rebuilding relationships in the workplace at the earliest stages of a grievance is welcomed. Independent providers are able to offer a more flexible intervention, tailored to the circumstances of the individual case, to produce cost-effective, sustainable outcomes.” Jan can be contacted at jhs@consensusmediation.co.uk.