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The growth of online purchasing, often across borders, is increasing in tandem with the number of disputes. With the aim of increasing trust in e-commerce, the EU and the UN have acknowledged the need to promote redress mechanisms that are suited for this forum. Through his work in this area, Dr Pablo Cortés has assisted in the drafting of EU legislation that strengthens the rights of half a billion consumers in the EU by guaranteeing the availability and online access of quality alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms for settling contractual disputes between consumers and traders. The legislation, approved in 2013, ensures the availability of quality ADR schemes, which will be accessible to European complainants through an Online Dispute Resolution platform.
Prof Hörnle's research into Online Dispute Resolution has had a clear impact in government policies and the drafting of legislation at international level (UNCITRAL, Organization of American States (OAS)), EU level and UK level. ODR is an extremely new field (only 10-12 years' old) and there is little expertise in the area among lawyers, government and other policymakers. The underpinning research in this case examines how cross-border commercial and consumer disputes can be solved using internet technology as an alternative to national courts. Building on existing research on Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), the research examined how ADR can be applied specifically in an online context and has had a significant impact on legal practitioners, policy makers and governments. This is a new field of research, and the work has been used by the European Commission to draft the first European legislation on Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) and has informed the approach taken by policy-makers in the UK to implementing this legislation. It has also critically shaped the discussion of ODR in international, regional and national organisations.
Over the last five years, researchers within the Institute for Research into Organisations, Work and Employment (iROWE) have worked closely with policy-makers at the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) to develop a programme of research that has provided new evidence in the areas of conflict management and downsizing. This has been central in re-shaping Acas's strategic priorities to include explicit reference to conflict management for the first time. It has also informed Acas's response to government over proposed employment reform and been used to develop new guidance in respect of redundancy handling, representation and workplace mediation. These impacts were sustained and maximised through the co-ordination of an ESRC funded seminar series, co-sponsored by Acas in 2012-13.
Research by Professor Ian Cunningham and Professor Dennis Nickson has influenced policy and practice with regard to a range of employment relations issues in the voluntary sector. Sector-level lead bodies, such as the Coalition of Care and Support Providers Scotland (CCPS) and individual trade unions (e.g. Unison and UNITE) and union confederations such as the Scottish Trade Union Congress (STUC) have adopted the research results and recommendations to campaign and influence public policy. The research has enabled Unison to establish a separate 'service group' (a term used to describe the union's key industrial sector). Research work on re-tendering in the voluntary social care sector (VSSC) has also been a key influence for the Scottish Government according to the Director of the CCPS, resulting in the formulation of specific guidance on social care procurement. Some research findings are cited in an influential report that has resulted in the establishment of a Scottish Government National Steering Group on joint strategic commissioning. The research on the impact of recession on VSSC has also led to joint lobbying between the STUC and employer organisations to campaign on worker terms and conditions, and training.
Faced with pressures on the UK Employment Tribunal (ET) system, policymakers have turned to alternative dispute resolution (ADR) as a way of easing the strain. However, there is little robust evidence of a statistically significant cost-saving impact from ADR. The evaluation of Judicial Mediation (JM) in ETs was the first to use robust statistical evaluation techniques. The Ministry of Justice commissioned study found that JM did not provide good value for money. The results have been debated widely amongst policymakers, practitioners and across various media; impacting the activities, attitudes, awareness and practice of those involved in ADR within the UK.
Research undertaken at the University of Manchester (UoM) considers the use of mediation for citizen versus state disputes outside the context of the courts, and efforts to render an appeals system less adversarial. It focuses specifically upon dispute resolution concerning Special Educational Needs (SEN). SEN is an area of education decision making relevant to one in five children, in which there is an established right of appeal to a tribunal.
The research has impacted on both policy development and practice, in terms of both the guidance given to parents by the tribunal and proposed legislation providing for would-be appellants' compulsory engagement with the choice of mediation as an alternative to appealing.
This case study describes the impact of research on improving employment outcomes for disadvantaged groups by influencing Government policy on employability. The case study focuses on the contribution to national employment policy from research conducted by the Employment Research Institute (ERI) at Edinburgh Napier University. Impacts outlined in this case study describe research that has been applied in the public policy field to address the issue of improving employment outcomes for those with complex barriers to employment.
Research undertaken since 1999 by Professor Paul Latreille at Swansea University has examined workplace conflict and its resolution. Much of this research has been externally funded by the ESRC, government and other bodies, and published as reports and papers in internationally recognised academic journals. The research has delivered a range of impacts, including shaping policymaker and practitioner debate and providing confirmation of, and challenges to, policy and practice. Impact is evidenced, inter alia, by references to the research in government consultation documents and responses to such documents, Parliamentary debate and practitioner materials.
Brown has carried out research on payment, workplace industrial relations, conflict resolution, and collective bargaining over forty years. He has had a close involvement with policy formulation and implementation in British industrial relations; this has continued since 2008. The attached testimonies confirm that his research since 1993 has had a direct influence on the design and continued implementation of the National Minimum Wage; on the work of the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service; and on the administration of the Union Modernisation Fund. His research is the basis for a continuing advisory role with the Chinese government