Building a Code of Civility

The Human Resources Director of a U.S. federal agency sought help with a conflict between two employees. Changes in roles and responsibilities led to frustrations between a veteran employee and their new counterpart. The new counterpart was challenged by a difference in communication style as well as a lack of training. These frustrations led to poor job performance and hostility between the individuals. Destructive communication became frequent among the parties, and a discrimination complaint was filed. A cursory investigation found no grounds for discrimination, and therefore no in-depth investigation was initiated. Instead, they sought out Peacemaking services to repair and rebuild the relationship between these two employees.

Our Peacebuilder began analysis through one-on-one interviews with both employees. She then outlined a strategy for moving forward with a facilitated dialogue and mapped out the identified challenges that both employees shared. The initial facilitated dialogue brought out larger issues related to leadership and accountability. Further interviews with each employee and with a Supervisor were conducted, leading to a second facilitated dialogue.

• After the second dialogue, a Code of Civility was created to explicitly map out effective communication tactics for both employees in order to mitigate further conflict.
• The Supervisor was able to clarify roles, responsibilities, and accountability for both employees.
• Check-in reports suggest the dialogue outcome was successful, and the employees are now working together productively.