How life coaching can help manage grievances in the workplace
The workplace can be a challenging environment to navigate; especially finding a fair and equal balance between your own and others’ expectations surrounding work.
If you are working in an organisation, at some stage you may have a problem, concern or complaint (a grievance) that you wish to take up with an employer.
This grievance could be raised, for example, if you felt you were overlooked for a promotion that should have been given or suffered discrimination and have been bullied by colleagues at work because of your age, sexuality, race or disability.
As a personal life coach, and an impartial third party helping to resolve workplace grievances, I have found that when such issues are not swiftly addressed they can bubble furiously under the surface, only to erupt like fiery red lava out of a volcano at a later date.
Crucial to minimising the risk of conflict is clear and effective communication at all stages of raising a grievance.
Initially the parties involved can consider speaking together informally and setting up a formal meeting to resolve any concerns, however this may not always prove to be successful and a mediation may be a useful approach.
Life coaching can help manage grievances in the workplace by:exploring the issues of all concerned in order to rebuild relationships, bringing parties together to empathise with the feelings of other individuals involved, allowing individuals to gain an insight into their own behaviour and seeking new avenues for change .
By employing the tools offered by life coaching, grievances in the workplace can also be effectively resolved in a cost effective way avoiding the need to go to an employment tribunal or through a formal grievance process.
With the external resource of a life coach and use of collaborative problem solving, communication can be encouraged between parties to find a solution that is mutually beneficial, creating a win/win outcome.
References –
Acas, 2012. Discipline and Grievances at Work Mediation. Available from: http://www.acas.org.uk/media/pdf/s/o/Acas-Guide-on-discipline
-and-grievances_at_work_(April_11)-accessible-version-may-2012.pdf
[Accessed 22 July 2013]
Citizens Advice Bureau, 2013. Dealing with Grievances at Work. Available from: http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/england/work_e/work_problems_at_work_e/
dealing_with_grievances_at_work.htm
[Accessed 22 July 2013]
Podro, S. and Suff, R., 2013. Mediation: An Approach to Resolving Workplace Issues. Acas.
Available from: http://www.acas.org.uk/media/pdf/2/q/Mediation
-an-approach-to-resolving-workplace-issues.pdf
[Accessed 22 July 2013]
Natalie Dee
London Life Coach & Business Coach, London UK
Certified High Performance Coach & Master NLP Practitioner
Natalie Dee, London Life Coach works in the area of lifestyle management as a London life coach, using life coaching with confidence coaching and NLP both in London and throughout the UK, applying techniques such as NLP, EFT and Hypnotherapy to improve levels of self-confidence as well as relationships, personal health, finance and career. Life coaching London, UK and worldwide available.