An eye-opening 29 per cent of staff experience bullying and conflict in the workplace. Scary, isn’t it? But what isn’t is the way you can resolve these conflicts should they happen at your salon. So, join us as we share top advice to help look after your staff.
Have a bullying and conflict policy
First and foremost, you’ll want a policy to prevent any bullying and conflict before it happens! This should outline what is acceptable behaviour and any disciplinary steps taken should bullying happen in the workplace. Remember that bullying may not just be insults, but also the spreading of false info or making a passive-aggressive comment. Make sure you make it clear what behaviour is marked as bullying in your policy.
Back-to-work positivity to resolve bullying and conflict
It’s wonderful to be back in business, but not everyone will embrace the sudden shift to a close-contact environment. Beyond listening to staff concerns, it’s worth promoting the positive parts of their return to work to avoid negative behaviour. This could include the social side or new skills they’ve learned that can be used. We outline even more back-to-the-salon advice in other blogs, too.
Have a heart-to-heart with staff
Conflict is never pleasant but having a heart-to-heart with those involved is an important step to resolve it. No matter which side of the dispute they’re on, make sure you put aside time to talk to them one-to-one. Not only will your staff feel listened to, but it will help resolve any bullying and conflict.
Gather evidence of any bullying
Whilst it’s super important to come across as approachable, you may also need to do some investigating yourself. That includes collecting evidence of when and where the bullying occurred. This is important as whilst bullying isn’t against the law (which is where your policy and disciplinary actions come in), harassment caused from it is, under the Equality Act 2020. You will then be able to keep a record and take the appropriate actions as a result.
Measure positive wellbeing with Low Ears
A sure-fire way to pre-empt conflict is by monitoring your staff’s emotional needs. Low Ears is an initiative that has the perfect way to do this using its mood barometer. Created by Sam Pearce, staff can measure how they are feeling by moving the position of a dog icon’s ears – high for feeling great, middle for doing okay and low for not so good.
Low Ears also features plenty of other support to help the wellbeing of those in the hair and beauty industry. This includes one-to-one mentoring with Sam and mental health awareness training. It’s this feeling of being looked after that will prevent potential bullying and conflict. For more details on Low Ears and its support, read our blog here or head to the Low Ears website.