When employees fight or dislike each other, the effect on the working environment for other coworkers can be very detrimental. Conflict will naturally always arise when various people need to deal with each other day-in and day-out. How a company and managers deal with conflict determines its overall effectiveness. Simply stated, the longer a conflict is allowed to continue, the greater negative impact the feud can cause.
Conflict in the workplace can be a difficult thing to address. In many cases, managers may not even realize there is a problem until it is too late. To ensure that any issue is handled quickly, it is important you are proactive and in regular communication with employees. Additionally, it is important to pre-screen for behavioural issues during the hiring process through the proper use of pre-hire assessments.
Although it may seem like co-worker conflict (when you’re in the ‘thick’ of it) may never end, it does and here are some of the possible outcomes to consider:
1) The worst-case scenario is when the conflict damages the workplace and either one, both or workers (outside of the conflict who feel the environment has become toxic) quit the company.
2) One of them refuses to work together and solve the problem, which may mean they need to be let-go to restore order.
3) One of them ‘takes the high road’ and permits the other to ‘win’ thus dropping the issue altogether.
4) Both of them agree to disagree and move on.
5) Both of them work out the issue and move on.
There are some tertiary possibilities that may arise, but mostly these five will be the outcome of every conflict between co-workers.
The real situation is how managers handle the potential of feuding employees and the steps they take to prevent any issues. Here are six tips we advise:
1) Review and monitor social media and company email. Disgruntled employees may take their problems into an online forum resulting in the problem expanding beyond the realm of the office and into something worse. Remind employees about company protocols.
2) Maintain open lines of communication with employees. Creating the kind of culture that allows for open discussions helps to alleviate any problems before they occur.
3) Meet privately with employees who may be in an argument and attempt to negotiate a remedy. This must be done as quickly as possible.
4) Promote a culture of respect, tolerance and civility within the office. Lead by example at all times.
5) Alert upper management of any issues that have not been resolved.
6) Alert HR if necessary to act as an independent mediator with some abilities such as issuing notices, probation and other tactics available to them.