"Saving Face" In Employment Mediation - A Blog Series - Post #1

Employment law disputes can be tough to settle. These disputes center not only on employment practices, but also on deeply held personal views of worth, honor, and status. Parties draw “lines in the sand” over their take on the law and swear that they will not move, creating the need to “save face” when they compromise. Of course, mediators who work in this area must work within a maze of applicable laws and regulations but they also must understand interpersonal dynamics and effectively manage and redirect intense emotions. It can be a lot to juggle for mediators.

Many users of mediation believe that successful mediators must possess subject matter expertise in employment law. I don’t disagree per se. From a practical perspective, however, the parties need to feel good enough about the process and the proposed terms in order to agree to a deal. In other words, good mediators may offer their take on the law, but they have to offer more to generate movement.

Saving face is the way in which we stay true, or consistent, to the positions we assume in negotiating conflict resolution. Innately, we know the “social costs of changing one’s mind or appearing inconsistent can be steep.”[1] We want to look good – competent, strong, and confident – to ourselves and to others. That is the face we want to wear.

Over the coming weeks and months, look for more content about how mediators can help parties save face when mediating employment disputes.

[1] Paul Brest and Linda Hamilton Krieger, Problem Solving, Decision Making and Professional Judgment” A Guide for Lawyers and Policymakers, 556 (2010).