Unfair Dismissal & Termination
Dismissals, forced resignations, redundancy disagreements. The 21-day Fair Work deadline — what it means and how to protect your rights.
Read the guide →
Nationally accredited mediators · 90%+ resolution rate
Workplace Mediation — Resolve It Before It Costs More
Workplace disputes rarely stay contained. Left unresolved, they can consume management time, damage team culture, increase legal costs and expose the organisation to escalating risk. Workplace mediation provides a confidential, structured way to address the conflict early — before positions harden and the cost of resolving it increases.
90%
resolved at mediation*
1 Day
not months in tribunal
100%
confidential process
* The Fair Work Commission reports approximately 3 in 4 unfair dismissal matters settle at conciliation. Our own resolution rate across all workplace mediations is approximately 90%.
The earlier a workplace dispute is addressed, the more options you usually have. Once positions harden, lawyers become involved or formal proceedings begin, the financial and organisational cost can increase quickly. Mediation gives the parties an opportunity to resolve the problem while they still control the outcome.
Two ways through a workplace dispute. One is usually faster, less expensive and easier to control.
Some workplace disputes require formal proceedings. Many don't. Early mediation gives the parties an opportunity to resolve the problem before the conflict — and its cost — escalates.
The formal path
- Lawyers become involved
- Correspondence and allegations escalate
- Management time increases
- Positions become entrenched
- Costs continue to accumulate
- The workplace lives with the dispute
- Someone else may ultimately decide the outcome
vs
Mediation first
- Address the problem early
- Bring the right people into the room
- Identify what's actually driving the conflict
- Test positions and assumptions
- Explore practical solutions
- Protect working relationships where possible
- Keep control of the outcome
"The question isn't whether the dispute is serious enough for mediation. It's whether allowing it to continue is likely to produce a better outcome."
Book a Free Consultation →Workplace & employment disputes
Choose the area closest to your situation.
Workplace conflict takes many forms. Select the situation that most closely matches yours — each guide covers the legal context, time limits and how mediation can help resolve it.
Workplace Bullying & Harassment
Repeated unreasonable behaviour creating a health and safety risk. Where mediation helps, where it doesn't, and how stop-bullying orders work.
Read the guide →General Protections & Discrimination
Adverse action, workplace rights and protected attributes. Time limits as short as 21 days — how conciliation and mediation resolve these claims.
Read the guide →Executive Conflict & Exit
Partners falling out, leadership team conflict, directors under strain, or a senior executive negotiating a dignified exit — resolved privately before it damages the business.
Read the guide →Role, Identity & Restructure Disputes
Redundancy challenges, role changes, restructures and the consultation obligations that are often missed. When a restructure is disputed, early mediation can resolve it before a formal claim is filed.
Read the guide →Workplace Investigations & Grievances
When a complaint needs handling well. When to investigate, when to mediate, and how to resolve grievances and repair a workplace without a drawn-out formal process.
Read the guide →How it works
A calm, clear path to agreement.
You don't need to know how the dispute will be resolved before mediation begins. That's what the process is designed to uncover. We provide a structured, independent process that moves the parties from competing positions towards understanding the real issues, testing possible solutions and — where agreement is possible — documenting a practical way forward.
01
Free consultation
Understand your position, your options and whether mediation is the right path. Fixed-fee from there — no open-ended billing.
02
Our Mediators engaged
Workplace disputes need someone who understands employment law and workplace dynamics. Our mediators are also experienced lawyers.
03
Private preparation
The mediator speaks with each party separately to understand the issues and any safety or power-imbalance concerns before the session.
04
The session
Together or in shuttle format — in person or online. Everyone is heard. The mediator guides, not decides.
05
Agreement made binding
Around 90% of matters resolve in the session. The outcome is formalised into an enforceable deed of settlement.
Fair Work integration
Mediation and the Fair Work system can work together.
You don't have to wait for the dispute to escalate.
Mediation can occur before a Fair Work application, while a matter is before the Commission, or alongside other workplace processes. Early mediation can be particularly valuable because the organisation and employees may still have more options available before positions harden and substantial legal costs are incurred.
Before you lodge
Use mediation to resolve things directly and avoid the formal process entirely.
Alongside a lodged claim
Reach a settlement faster and on your own terms while a claim is on foot.
Where the FWC doesn't reach
Team dynamics, executive exits and commercial partnership disputes sit outside the Commission's remit.
Dan Toombs
Founder & Mediator
AMDRAS Accredited Mediator · Award-Winning Lawyer · Former Tribunal Member, QCAT · Winston Churchill Fellow
Meet Dan →Your mediator
Your Mediator
Dan brings a combination of experience that few workplace mediators can offer. He has run organisations, not merely advised them. As an award-winning lawyer, former CEO and Board Director, he understands the realities business owners face — staffing pressures, workplace culture, and governance — and appreciates what unresolved conflict genuinely costs an organisation in money, management time and the retention of good people.
He also understands adjudication from the inside. As a former tribunal member who has sat as an independent decision-maker, he knows how unpredictable it can be to place a dispute in the hands of a third party to decide, and why parties are often better served by retaining control over the outcome themselves.
His specialist training in team dynamics (Belbin) and Adaptive Leadership allows him to identify what is genuinely driving a conflict, beneath the positions each party puts forward. This insight is central to achieving resolutions that endure, rather than agreements that unravel over time.
The result is an approach that treats a workplace dispute for what it usually is: not simply a legal problem, but an organisational and human one requiring a practical and durable resolution that both parties can accept and sustain.
Common questions
Workplace mediation FAQs.
When should an employer consider workplace mediation?+
Mediation is often most effective before a dispute becomes entrenched. Warning signs include repeated complaints, communication breakdown, declining team performance, escalating allegations, management time being consumed by the conflict, employees taking sides, or the prospect of formal proceedings. You do not need to wait until every internal process has failed before considering mediation.
What is workplace mediation?+
Workplace mediation is a voluntary, confidential process in which a neutral mediator helps people in an employment relationship resolve a dispute without going to court or a tribunal. The mediator does not impose a decision — they help the parties reach their own workable agreement.
Is workplace mediation legally required in Australia?+
Not across the board. Unlike parenting matters, there is no general legal requirement to mediate a workplace dispute. However, the Fair Work Commission actively encourages conciliation and mediation, and courts expect parties to have made genuine attempts to resolve matters before litigating.
How long does workplace mediation take?+
Most workplace mediations are completed in a single session, often within a day. A matter can usually be booked within a few weeks — compared with many months, sometimes over a year, for a contested tribunal or court outcome.
Is what I say in mediation confidential?+
Yes. Mediation is conducted on a without-prejudice basis, meaning offers and admissions made during the process usually cannot be used later in court. This confidentiality is what allows people to speak openly and explore settlement.
Do I need a lawyer to attend workplace mediation?+
No, it is not mandatory. Many people mediate without a lawyer present. Getting legal advice before or after is sensible — especially where significant rights or money are involved — so you understand the implications before signing anything.
What does workplace mediation cost?+
We use transparent, fixed-fee pricing so you know the cost up front. Fees are typically shared between the parties. Start with a free consultation — no surprises, no open-ended billing.
Resolve it early — before it costs more.
Workplace conflict rarely becomes cheaper or easier with time. If a dispute is consuming management attention, affecting your team or moving towards lawyers, Fair Work or formal proceedings, now is the time to explore whether mediation can change its course. Speak confidentially with Dan about what’s happening, what’s at stake and the most practical next step.
Discuss Your Workplace Dispute →Confidential consultation · No obligation · Australia-wide