77867 Workplace Dispute Resolution

Requisite(s): 79771c Dispute Resolution (PG) AND 60 credit points of completed study in C04148 Master of Law and Legal Practice

These requisites may not apply to students in certain courses.

There are also course requisites for this subject. See access conditions.

This subject explores the applications of dispute resolution theory and practical skills in the workplace. It explores the causes of conflict within the workplace setting and some legislative requirements for dealing with workplace disputes. The relevance of a range of dispute resolution processes and the possible challenges to their implementation are explored. Impediments to changing the dispute resolution culture in the workplace are identified and dispute resolution models and the design of systems for implementation in both the private and public sectors are studied.

This subject covers the following topics.

• Analysis of workplace conflict and its sources.
• The legal, political and historical contexts within which workplace conflict has been managed and how it is changing.
• The existing dispute resolution cultures in Australian workplaces.
• The types of disputes within the workplace, including grievances and management disputes, and the dispute resolution processes that are applicable.
• The theory of the role of dispute resolution processes in effecting behavioural change in the workplace.
• The theory shaping mediation techniques for resolving workplace disputes.
• Designing, implementing and evaluating a dispute resolution system for a workplace.
• The relationship between organisational change and dispute resolution processes.
• The difference in managing disputes in the public and private sectors.
• The negotiation dynamic of enterprise and employment contract bargaining.

Assessment: Assessment is based on a written assignment and a case study presented in a seminar.