A Comissão Europeia apresentou hoje um pacote de propostas legislativas para garantir que todos os consumidores da UE possam resolver seus problemas sem recorrer ao tribunal, independentemente do tipo de produto ou serviço que a disputa contratual diz respeito e independentemente do país onde comprou o bem no mercado único europeu (ou seja, no seu próprio país ou no estrangeiro). Para os consumidores de compras on-line a partir de outro país da UE, a Comissão pretende criar á escala da UE uma plataforma online única, que permitirá resolver disputas contratuais inteiramente on-line num prazo de 30 dias.
Comunicado de imprensa: “O Parlamento Europeu e o Conselho comprometeram-se a adoptar o pacote legislativo, que constitui uma das acções prioritárias do Acto para o Mercado Único, até ao final de 2012 (ver IP/11/469). Este pacote é também uma das acções da Agenda Digital para a Europa. Os Estados-Membros terão 18 meses a contar da data da adopção da referida directiva para proceder à sua transposição. Tal significa que os mecanismos de RAL extrajudiciais de qualidade deverão estar disponíveis em toda a UE na segunda metade de 2014. A plataforma europeia única de resolução de litígios em linha estará plenamente operacional seis meses após esse prazo (ou seja, no início de 2015), depois de serem instituídos e actualizados os órgãos extrajudiciais necessários ao seu funcionamento.”
Esta é uma grande notícia tanto para os consumidores europeus como para os consumidores de outras partes do planeta pois certamente que outras regiões seguirão o exemplo da Europa.
Para informação completa consultar: http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/11/1461&format=HTML&aged=0&language=PT&guiLanguage=en
Ana Maria Maia Gonçalves
Who’s Who of Commercial Mediation 2011
A Convirgente é a única empresa Portuguesa presente no Who’s Who Legal 2011 na área da mediação. Fazer parte deste prestigiado painel de mediadores internacionais é para nós uma honra que não podia não partilhar convosco.
Para mais informações
http://www.whoswholegal.com/firms/12034/convirgente/
Obrigada
Ana
“Tempo é dinheiro”
Benjamim Franklin (1706-1790)
Quando falo com vários directores de recursos humanos e vejo o tempo que estes passam a resolver conflitos internos eu pergunto “Não acha que haveria outra forma de ver o problema? sabe que a mediação interna, a formação em resolução de conflitos nas empresas já provou ser uma fonte de redução de custos? sabe quanto gasta a resolver os seus conflitos internos?” nunca tive respostas concretas de nenhuma empresa portuguesa, e quando comentávamos aqui na Convirgente o estudo sobre conflituosidade nas empresas portuguesas que fizemos em 2009, a maioria das direcções de recursos humanos estava consciente do problema mas ia continuar a gastar o orçamento formação em muitas outras matérias, sobretudo management, e não iria eleger a “resolução de conflitos” como algo de importante na estratégia de formação da empresa. A gestão de conflitos é por vezes integrada numa formação mais longa mas raras vezes é uma formação específica. O ensino das técnicas de mediação internamente nas empresas é quase inexistente. Uma real estratégia de “Integrated Conflict Management System” não existe em Portugal. Estou convicta que para resolver um problema é necessário primeiro identifica-lo. Em Portugal, conflitos? Eu? Não tenho conflitos na minha empresa… a última vez que um dirigente me disse isto e começou depois a falar-me de um caso, muito específico eu só comentei “pois é, na sua empresa devem trabalhar robots, pois se não tem conflitos é porque não tem pessoas as trabalhar para si”…. está claro que, não sendo a clareza algo que prima na maioria das conversações deste tipo o meu interlocutor não gostou mas também não respondeu e educadamente acabamos por ali a conversa.
Em Março deste ano, o Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development publicou um estudo sobre conflituosidade empresarial em Inglaterra. Podem ter acesso ao estudo completo
http://www.cipd.co.uk/binaries/5461_Conflict_manage_SR_WEB.pdf
Os resultados da pesquisa confirmam que os conflitos de trabalho nas empresas têm aumentado com a recessão. E face a esta situação várias empresas inglesas conscientes dos custos financeiros e conscientes do impacto dos conflitos na produtividade e no bem estar dos seus colaboradores, decidiram começar a implementar a mediação interna. Aqui segue a leitura deste testemunho esperando que possa ser algo que um director português queira seguir como exemplo…quem sabe! Boa semana a todos. Ana
“Arcadia Group is the UK’s largest privately owned clothing retailer, with more than 2,500 outlets and a number of well-known high street brands, including Topshop and Topman. In August 2009 a pilot mediation scheme was introduced in the two brands. The business case was built on cost savings from reducing the number of cases referred to the grievance procedure. Grievance cases typically take three weeks to resolve and require a significant input of HR and line management time. In the following 12 months, the number of grievances involving relationships between managers and subordinates at Topshop/Topman was down by 50%, while it increased by 12% across the group’s other brands as a whole. In the same period, 14 issues were referred to mediation, all but two of which were brought to a successful conclusion. Topshop and Topman have trained members of their joint HR team in mediation skills. It operates a two-tier system under which some cases are dealt with by senior mediators who have undergone extensive training while less difficult issues are referred to mediators with more limited skills. The company can also draw on the support of external mediation (though so far they have not found it necessary to do so). The pilot has had the unexpected benefit of getting across to employees the general idea that problems could be resolved by talking about them. This was a major shift from the belief that, if they had a problem, ‘someone else’ would be there to sort it out for them. The mediation scheme is seen as fitting well with the culture and values of Topshop and Topman, which amongst other things emphasise employee well-being. Paul Forrest, Employee Relations Manager at Acadia Group, emphasises that putting in place a mediation scheme involves a lot of hard work for HR and managers but is worth the effort. Mediation is an alien concept for many people and the scheme needs to be vigorously marketed. At Topshop and Topman there was some initial scepticism among employees, who saw that mediators were members of the HR team and which then raised the question ‘what was so different from the standard process for handling grievances?’ The HR team for the two brands responded with posters and leaflets emphasising that mediation was totally impartial. Now that they are becoming more familiar with it, employees have confidence in the service. Paul says that before the mediation scheme was introduced, he had already begun to think about reinforcing the company’s policies on bullying and harassment and problem-solving. However, the repeal of the statutory discipline and grievance procedures in 2009, and the emphasis by government on the value of mediation, was an important catalyst. He did a course to acquire professional mediation skills to get a better understanding of how mediation works before he introduced it to the business. The success of the Topshop and Topman pilot means that the Arcadia Group has decided to roll out mediation across its seven other brand businesses in 2011. The group has initiated a training programme for 30 HR professionals so that mediators are available to work across brands and the whole of the UK and Ireland. Eventually the plan is to recruit and train line managers in mediation skills. Other big retailers have also now introduced or are considering mediation schemes.”
Em várias partes do mundo as empresas reconhecem as vantagens de recorrerem á mediação de conflitos para resolver os seus problemas comercias. Prática já muito desenvolvida nos Estado Unidos, na Austrália e em Inglaterra,é agora a vez de Singapura de colocar a Mediação na base da pirâmide de resolução de conflitos comerciais. O testemunho de um CEO de um hospital que nos indica como a Mediação contribuiu para a satisfação dos seus pacientes e ao mesmo tempo para a redução dos custos jurídicos do hospital..
Vários advogados me confessaram “Ana! se eu sugiro á outra parte uma mediação o meu colega vai logo pensar que o meu caso não vale
nada!” ou seja, a proposta de mediação por uma das partes, aquando de um litígio comercial, é vista como uma fraqueza. Esta é a nossa realidade… Mas não perco a esperança de que um dia este mesmo advogado chegue á conclusão de que não perde nada de propor uma mediação ao seu cliente! o recurso ao Tribunal será sempre possível, e seguramente mais caro, mais moroso e sobretudo com uma
solução exclusivamente legal, quando todos nós que trabalhamos no mundo empresarial sabemos quão longe estas decisões exclusivamente jurídicas estão do mundo dos negócios!!!
Aqui segue o artigo de Monica Kotwani no Singapora News.. Boa leitura! Ana
SINGAPORE: Twenty-six organisations from industries such as transport, property and health have signed the Singapore Mediation Charter, pledging to consider mediation as a first resort in resolving disputes.
The charter is an initiative by the Singapore Mediation Centre (SMC), which has seen an increase in the number of mediation cases.
Some disputes arise over differences in the perceived nature of treatment given to patients, while others arise over an unwillingness of home sellers to pay the agreed commission to their real estate agents. These are just some of the disputes the SMC hopes can be settled through mediation, rather than battling it out in court.
SMC has about 300 mediators, a mix of those with a legal background and others from industries such as banking, engineering and accountancy. They have all undergone mediation or conflict-resolution training.
SMC executive director Loong Seng Onn said: “These leading companies are willing to go out there, and publicly say, ‘Look, if we’re involved in a dispute, we want to consider mediation first’.
“I think this is really important because in disputes, sometimes parties do not want to be the first to suggest mediation. Some people fear that ‘If I suggest mediation first, people may perceive that I have a weak case’.
“Now, with this public statement, it’s out there. If I’ve got a dispute, I’ll say ‘I’m going to consider mediation because I’ve made a public pledge.’
“It’s also part of good corporate governance. We all know how painful, how lengthy, how resource-sapping litigation is. Mediation is also important if you are in a business of wanting to project an image where you are customer-friendly.
The SMC has been around since 1997, but it said mediation in an institutionalised form is still not as mature as it is in countries such as the US and Australia.
As such, there is still a lack of familiarity with the process. Still, it said the number of cases it handles is on the rise – having mediated 118 cases last year, compared to 49 in 2005. Since 1997, it has handled some 2,000 cases, with claims totalling more than S$2.69 billion.
The amount is a cumulative calculation based on the fact that the fee charged by SMC to handle the mediation is based on the amount in dispute between parties.The centre also provides mediation training to companies and organisations.
Tan Tock Seng Hospital was one of the organisations which attended the training in 2006. Tan Tock Seng CEO Philip Choo said: “We’ve now picked up the skills on how to communicate, how to see issues from both parties’ sides, how to come to an agreement on some of the common areas.”And we’ve used it on our own with any issues with our patients and our families. And we’ve been pretty successful at it.”
Professor Choo said mediation has helped reduce the hospital’s legal fees over the years, even as it sees more patients.Organisations that signed the charter include ComfortDelGro, the National Healthcare Group and ERA Realty.
ERA key executive officer Eugene Lim said most disputes in the industry are over differences in expectations, with the typical dispute involving customers who are unwilling to pay their agents the fees agreed upon. Mr Lim added with the industry now regulated under the Estate Agents Act, mediation process is a mandatory first resort, while arbitration and litigation are considered a last choice.
Moving forward, SMC said it wants to reach out to the next generation of lawyers. It is working with the Singapore Institute of Legal Education in running a mediation-skills elective module, for the first time, at the Preparatory Course leading to Part B of the Singapore Bar Examinations.
CSPI litigation director Stephen Gardner said ““Mediation is fairly common in complex cases, including class actions. A mediator is usually a paid disinterested party who attempts to mediate a settlement. On a case like this, mediation is likely to last a day.”
A class action lawsuit brought against Coca-Cola by advocacy group The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) over Coke’s VitaminWater range is set to go to mediation, FoodNavigator-USA has learned.
Asked whether this meant Coca-Cola was likely to settle, CSPI litigation director Stephen Gardner told FoodNavigator-USA.com: “There is no predicting whether it will result in a settlement.”He added: “We’ve done some paper discovery, but no depositions [of Coca-Cola executives] yet. However, the real development is that the case is going to mediation in July. Until that is concluded, the discovery process is largely on hold.”He added: “Mediation is fairly common in complex cases, including class actions. A mediator is usually a paid disinterested party who attempts to mediate a settlement. On a case like this, mediation is likely to last a day.”
Name could reinforce belief that product contains only water and vitamins
The lawsuit , which was filed in 2009 and brought together class actions in New Jersey, New York and California, alleged that Coca-Cola had misled consumers over the health benefits of VitaminWater.Coca-Cola immediately filed a motion to dismiss the suit, which was rejected last summer. Federal judge John Gleeson of the US District Court in Brooklyn also rejected Coca-Cola’s argument that by listing the sugar content of VitaminWater in the nutrition panel it could not be accused of misleading consumers: “The fact that the actual sugar content of VitaminWater was accurately stated in a Food and Drug Administration-mandated label on the product does not eliminate the possibility that reasonable consumers may be misled.” Meanwhile, the description of the product as a ‘vitamin-enhanced water beverage’ and the phrases ‘vitamins + water = all you need’ also had “the potential to reinforce a consumer’s mistaken belief that the product is comprised of only vitamins and water,” added Gleeson. Jelly bean rule He also found that Coca-Cola’s use of health claims and the word ‘healthy’ violated FDA regulations on vitamin-fortified foods (the so-called ‘jelly bean rule’ rule that prohibits companies from making health claims on foods that only meet various nutrient thresholds via fortification).
http://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/Legislation/Coca-Cola-VitaminWater-class-action-to-go-to-mediation
