Why should parties mediate employment disputes?
When I am chosen to be your Employment Law Meditator, you will have the advantages of a trained Mediator with more 30 years of legal experience, considerable employment law knowledge, and years of experience in litigating, arbitrating and mediating employment law claims in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. At Abramson Employment Law Mediation, you will know the full cost of mediation upfront and always work directly with me, instead of the administrative hurdles, and extra overhead and fees associated with Mediators who work for private alternative dispute organizations.
Employment law mediation is a voluntary process that utilizes a neutral third party to assist the Parties (employees and employers) negotiate the resolution of a dispute that typically, but not always, has already resulted in the termination of the employment relationship. An Employment Law Mediator does not have any power to render a resolution to the conflict, instead, the Mediator serves to assist the Parties in facilitating a resolution.
Several years ago, a study in the United States District Court Eastern District of Pennsylvania found that approximately 97% of employment law cases filed in the Court never proceeded to a trial. Thus, the ultimate result of those employment law cases was that they settled, or they were dismissed at a motion stage. Based on more than 30 years of experience, the ultimate disposition of cases filed in other Pennsylvania and New Jersey courts is similar. While cases filed in courts resolve at all different stages of a proceeding, the ultimate reality should serve to encourage employers and employees to explore the possibility of resolving their disputes as soon as possible, which can save the Parties both time and a great deal of money.
The number of employment law disputes that are subject to mandatory arbitration agreements continues to increase. In these disputes, rather than proceeding through the court system, the case is filed with a designated third party, such as the America Arbitration Association, which will assign an arbitrator to take place the place of a judge or jury. While I am not aware of any reported studies on the percentage of arbitration matters that ultimately proceed to an arbitration before an arbitrator. based upon my experience and discussion with fellow practitioners and arbitrators, my sense is that the vast majority of most arbitration matters also resolve without the actual arbitration taking place.
Mediation of employment law disputes can encourage the Parties to resolve matters at the earliest stages of a matter, either prior to any filing, or at the administrative stage. Mediations also takes place when the Parties have already initiated the litigation or arbitration process. Parties engage Mediators during or after they proceed to discovery when they are interested in exploring the possibility of a resolution prior to the ultimate disposition, when they will lose any degree of control. By utilizing the services of a trained Employment Law Mediator, who is well versed in employment law, the Parties are able to gain assistance from a neutral third party with no stake in the outcome.
A successful Mediation of an employment law dispute has many advantages:
- Decision-Making Authority. The Parties retain the ultimate decision-making authority over the outcome of the dispute, rather than relinquishing control to a judge, jury, or arbitrator to decide the outcome.
- Creativity in Resolutions. Resolutions can be tailored to the Parties’ interests and needs, which in some circumstances can lead to the potential for creativity in resolutions, rather than having someone else impose a resolution, solely based on the forms of evidence that would be admissible at a trial or an arbitration, and the limitations that are placed on possible outcomes at a trial or arbitration.
- Confidentiality. A private confidential resolution can be achieved which is not publicly reported.
- Less Formality. The meditation process is informal and does not require defined procedures and rules. Instead, employment law mediation allows for the expression of important factors such as emotions and goals in a less formal environment with the assistance of a third party to facilitate discussion and suggest alternatives.
- Lower Costs. Lower costs to the ultimate resolution are achievable as opposed to higher costs that are associated with protracted litigation and arbitration, such as considerable attorney fee time and expenses, court reporter deposition transcript costs and expert witness fees that are traditionally associated with litigation and arbitration.
- Quicker Resolution: Rather than months or years that a matter will take to resolve in litigation or arbitration, mediation allows the Parties to reach a quick resolution and move on with their lives and business.
- No Winners and Losers. Unlike litigation and arbitration, resolution does not require the end result of picking a winner and loser, instead, the Parties are able to achieve a resolution to which each Party agrees, which is tailored to each Party’s needs.
ABRAMSON
EMPLOYMENT LAW MEDIATION
Blue Bell, PA 19422
Phone: 267-470-4742
Fax: 267-470-4754