Final Report of the Morris Inquiry: The Case for Change

PEOPLE ISSUES
practice. To quote the HMIC’s report on Police Integrity again: “staff will judge
procedures by outcomes not intentions.”
We therefore recommend that the MPS replaces its Fairness at Work policy
with a new grievance procedure, based on the ACAS Code of Practice on
Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures. The procedure should cover all
workplace conflicts involving officers and staff.
Resolving disputes
4.86 Note 4 to our terms of reference asks us to consider “whether appropriate
consideration is given to early resolution of grievances and conflicts, through mediation /
conciliation or an internal ombudsman or other restorative justice techniques and whether
there are adequate processes to achieve such resolution.”
4.87 We are, therefore, asked to consider the use of mediation, conciliation, an
internal ombudsman and restorative justice to resolve workplace conflicts in the
MPS. We received much evidence on some of these issues but we are uncertain
as to whether the concepts were always properly understood by those using the
terminology and whether individuals using the same terms had the same
understanding of their meaning.
4.88 We believe it might be helpful if we set out our understanding of what each
involves:
● ‘Mediation’ is a non-binding private dispute resolution process in which a
neutral person helps the parties try to reach a negotiated settlement. ACAS
uses the term ‘mediation’ to refer to a process for tackling disagreements at
an early stage and “to nip problems in the bud.”
● ‘Conciliation’ is a process similar to mediation but in which the third party
takes a more active role in putting forward terms of settlement or an
opinion on the case. ACAS uses ‘conciliation’ to refer to a process after a
formal claim has been lodged to try to help the parties resolve their
difficulties without the need for a tribunal hearing.
● ‘Restorative justice’ is more commonly used in the criminal context
and involves individuals taking responsibility for their own actions and
finding their own solutions to repairing any damage which may have
been caused. In the employment context, it has been linked closely with
mediation and the parties finding a mutually acceptable settlement to any
differences between them.
85