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Personnel Issues and Conflicts


This webpage is under construction.  In the meantime, click on Employee Advising.

 

Informal Conflict Management:

Conflicts among peers, in cases where the conflict does not threaten either participant with physical or emotional damage, and where the willingness is present to address differences, can be informally managed by the participants themselves, or in some cases with the help of a third party to which both parties agree.  A range of methods may be used, from sitting down to talk without any preconceived structure, to more structured forms of meeting such as constructive dialogue or mediation involving a trained outsider to the conflict.

The Library provides all of its supervisors and employees with a yearly opportunity to learn the technique of Constructive Dialogue®.  The day and a half workshop is offered by the HROE office.  The Constructive Dialogue® model was designed to offer practitioners effective tools to prepare for and facilitate frank and meaningful conversations with employees, colleagues, clients and customers.  It removes the adversarial nature of the process and replaces it with a constructive means of responding to important issues.

When efforts among peers fail to resolve a conflict, any party to the conflict can ask for help.  The HROE team can provide assistance.  In some cases, team leaders or the University Ombuds Office can provide a third-party mediation alternative.  

More formal approaches to conflicts over policies, procedures or unwelcome behavior from co-workers can be addressed by HROE, the dean or by contacting the central Human Resources department.  A dispute resolution resource website is offered by Campus Human Resources.

New supervisors are expected to attend the Constructive Dialogue® workshop as soon as possible after assuming supervisory duties.  This technique is particularly valuable in coaching employees and resolving conflicts among employees.  Supervisors are also encouraged to contact Human Resources for assistance in resolving conflicts.

Formal Conflict Management:  (Under Construction)

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