What Difference Does it Make? Facilitative Judicial Mediation of Discrimination Cases in Employment Tribunals

Mediation is promoted by government to reduce the volume, cost and formality of dispute resolution, but evidence of these benefits is inconclusive. A number of reports have analysed mediation of contract and similar cases in the County Courts but there has been little empirical work in the employment field. This article considers the findings of an evaluation of (facilitative) judicial mediation, piloted by the Employment Tribunal Service, for discrimination cases starting between June 2006 and March 2007. A matched analysis of the outcomes from 116 mediated cases, relative to an unmediated control group, found no significant impact of early resolution attributable to judicial mediation. This article digs deeper into the additional qualitative and quantitative evidence generated by the study to shed light on the process and outcomes. Detailed mediation reports completed by the judicial mediators and ‘in-depth’ interviews are reviewed to describe the outcomes of mediation employment cases against the outcomes offered in law, the views and levels of satisfaction of claimants, respondents and representative are considered. Suggestions are made for either adjusting the facilitative mediation model or seeking an alternative that complements existing dispute resolution services, particularly those provided by ACAS.