For those who have experienced unreasonable conduct or conflict in the workplace, resolution can take many forms. Understanding why an employee is behaving in a way that results in dispute is the first step to identifying the best strategies to manage unreasonable conduct.
As an experienced lawyer, mediator and workshop facilitator, when I am addressing this topic wether in a training situation or in dispute resolution practice, I first ensure the safety of individuals in a conversation. If the conduct of an individual threatens the physical or psychological health of others, then reporting that behaviour to emergency, law enforcement or welfare services becomes a priority.
Some common forms of unreasonable conduct seen by complaints handling agencies include:
Making repeated calls or sending emails about a complaint, even after being told that the issue has been addressed
Becoming angry or abusive with staff
Making unreasonable demands, such as insisting on a specific outcome to a complaint
Deliberately providing false or misleading information
In my experience, managing unreasonable conduct is about working through the following areas with my clients:
Self-awareness - understanding why certain conduct or behaviour may be challenging to the individual personally and ensuring that they can manage their responses and emotions in the interaction.
Systemic awareness - in some cases unreasonable conduct is displayed by individuals who are facing significant systemic barriers to their participation in a particular legal process. Thinking of how the individual can be empowered to engage constructively with the process is important in these cases.
Understanding how individual brains work when under stress - there is a fear response known as the ‘amygdala hijack’ which is a fight-or-flight response that can often explain sudden emotional outbursts that occur during conflict. Education on how the human brain works when faced with a threat helps to identify when an individual’s reaction to the conflict resolution process is a direct result of their fear response.
I also consider it is not helpful to focus on the personality or seek to diagnose an individual. While it is helpful to understand why some underlying mental health conditions may cause individuals to behave in particular ways, as conflict managers, it is not our role to diagnose or manage the person. Our job is to assist in the resolution of the particular dispute in a fair, impartial and effective manner.
The best way to resolve any conflict is to separate the person from the problem. This means taking time to understand the concerns, the surrounding systems and then addressing any challenging or unreasonable behavior directly, rather than labelling or changing your entire approach to an individual.
Join Shiv Martin’s upcoming online workshop - Managing Challenging Interactions:
Effectively responding to unreasonable conduct involves understanding why someone is behaving in a way that causes conflict, seeking to connect with that individual through empathy and actively listening. Furthermore, ensuring that reasonable limits are set and enforced around timing, topics of conversation and the steps that you will take offers meaningful solutions.
Setting limits with compassion is extremely important here. Limits invite focus, and reduces the likelihood of conversations that fall outside of the individuals role description and will ensure that no time is wasted off-topic.
Managing unreasonable conduct is often cited as the most stressful part of any conflict or complaints management job. For this reason, it is essential that staff are trained in the specific skill sets in this space.
Recently I designed an in-house workshop for a government agency that would assist their team to identify the different types of challenging conduct they encountered in the workplace, and then devise practical and consistent strategies to manage this conduct. By working as a team on this task, each team member was able to share their experience, debrief with their team members and ensure consistency in their approaches.
Explore our Managing Challenging and Unreasonable Conduct service offering:
Shiv Martin has specialised in delivering Managing Unreasonable Conduct Training to organisations with in-house workshops for over 13 years. Contact Shiv for more information on customised training or resources specific to your industry role.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you address unreasonable conduct through policies?
It is important to have service policies in place that make clear the standards of conduct that are unacceptable to your organisation and the steps that will be taken in response. Clear policies guide the expectations of all staff and stakeholders.
What is unreasonable conduct?
How do you manage abusive phone calls?