A Little More Conversation

EXPLORING THE FINDINGS

• In general, women find it harder to deal with tricky workplace issues, in particular, asking for a salary rise or promotion (64% of women vs 56% of men). The one issue that men find harder is discussing their career development and training (25% vs 22%).
• Women are less confident in raising formal grievances such as sexual harassment or bullying (48% vs 36%). They also find it harder asking to be paid the same as male colleagues who do the same job (37% vs 25%).
• Women appear to be more sensitive, with 58% worrying they may get upset during the conversation compared with 21% of men. They also worry what their colleagues will think or say (35% vs 26%).
• Female workers are less confident in their abilities to raise/handle difficult conversations (40% vs 30%) and also believe their negotiation skills are not up to scratch (36% vs 26%). Their lack of confidence is confirmed with 37% of women finding such issues hard to discuss because they worry they won't get what they want, compared with 29% of men.

• In general, the younger the respondent, the harder they find it to deal with tricky issues. 17% of those under 25 would rather quit their job than face a difficult conversation, compared with 12% of those aged 25-34, 7% of 35-44 year olds and 5% of those over 45.
• Confidence in dealing with difficult issues increases with age, with younger people in particular struggling to handle tricky conversations. In particular, younger people find asking for a salary rise or promotion, raising formal grievances, asking for equal pay and calling in sick much harder.
• Younger people are more open to using email or an intranet, with 61% of those under 25 believing it would be easier to use these to deal with issues compared with 34% of those over 45. In particular, 26% of the youngest workers would prefer to raise a formal grievance by email compared with 7% of people over 45. Older workers prefer face to face contact but are also more likely to involve their union or solicitor over an issue.
• Older workers appear to have the ear of their bosses, with just 17% of them complaining their boss is too busy to deal with issues compared with 29% of those under 25.

• Workers in mid-sized organisations (51-250 employees) find it hardest to deal with tricky issues, in particular, requesting equal pay. Over one in four (42%) claim this is really hard to raise, compared with 31% in the smallest companies and 29% in the largest.
• People working for smaller organisations (<50 staff) trust their boss will act on the conversation more than those in larger ones (>500 staff). In the biggest organisations, 39% of respondents believe their bosses will not follow up the discussion, compared with 27% in the smallest organisations. Workers in small companies worry more about what their colleagues will think (34% vs 26% in the largest organisations), while those in big companies are more concerned that discussing difficult issues will affect their career prospects (33% vs 30%). People in the largest companies are more likely to believe relationships with their bosses could be improved (39% vs 31%).
• Employees in bigger companies are keener to use email or an intranet to deal with some of these issues (53% vs 43% in the smallest companies), and are the most likely to choose email over face-to-face communication.

• The more junior an employee, the harder they find it to deal with tricky issues. In particular, those in clerical or administrative roles are most likely to avoid issues because they are too difficult to discuss (16% compared with 6% for mid-managers and 8% for senior managers).
• The most junior staff also find it hardest to ask for equal pay, with 40% finding this tricky compared with 35% of junior managers, 21% of mid-managers and 23% of senior managers. Raising formal grievances is also difficult, with 45% of clerical/admin staff, 38% of junior managers, 31% of mid-managers and 23% of senior managers disliking this conversation.
• Junior workers are the most likely group to speak to the HR department over such issues, reflecting the fact they are least likely to believe their boss will act on the conversation. One in four clerical/admin staff does not trust their boss to follow up the discussion, compared with 42% of junior managers, 28% of mid-managers and 19% of senior managers.
• Unsurprisingly, junior staff worry more that they won't get want they want. They are less able to handle a difficult conversation, with 39% of clerical/admin workers, 28% of junior managers, 26% of mid-managers and 21% of senior managers claiming they don't know how to raise or handle a tricky issue, and are also less experienced at negotiation. Nearly one in four (37%) of clerical/admin staff believe they are not very good at negotiation compared with 21% of junior and mid-managers and 15% of senior managers. They also worry more about getting upset during the discussion (42% of clerical/admin staff, 34% of junior managers, 26% of mid-managers and 17% of senior managers are concerned about this).
• Reflecting this lack of confidence, junior staff are more likely to raise a formal grievance and ask for a salary rise or promotion via email, while their middle and senior counterparts would overwhelmingly prefer to have such conversations face-to-face.
• Senior workers do, however, prefer to use email for more 'routine' personnel issues, such as asking for time off to visit doctors/dentists, requesting annual leave or asking for details of company policies, which junior staff are more comfortable asking for in person.

• People working in public administration/government find equal pay the least hard issue to raise, compared with those in the financial sector. Those in public administration/government and retail find it the easiest to ask for maternity or paternity leave, reflecting the strong flexible working ethics and opportunities available in these sectors.
• People working in manufacturing/utilities and retail are the most likely to quit their jobs over a difficult issue than workers in other industries. Workers in manufacturing/utilities are also the least likely to trust their boss to act on a discussion, while those in finance are most concerned that they won't get want they want.
• People working in the financial sector are most keen on using email or an intranet, particularly for issues such as requesting annual leave, asking for details of company policies, requesting time off to see doctors or dentists and providing feedback on colleagues for appraisals.
• People working in public administration and government are most likely to go via a union to raise a formal grievance, while those in education/health are most likely to deal with this issue by letter.
• Generally, those in professional services (law, marketing etc) are most likely to speak to their HR department to resolve difficult issues while those in tourism/hotels/restaurants are the least likely to talk to HR, reflecting the different ways that organisations in these sectors are structured.

• In general, Londoners find it harder to raise tricky issues at work than those living elsewhere. However, exceptions include asking for a salary rise or promotion and calling in sick.
• Workers in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland appear to be more sensitive than those in other regions, while those in London believe they are least well equipped to deal with difficult conversations and also worry most that they won't get what they ask for.
• London bosses appear to be the busiest, with 25% of workers claiming their boss is too busy to deal with difficult issues, compared with a national average of 22%.
• Londoners are most comfortable with email, and are keenest to request equal pay, provide feedback on colleagues, request time off to see doctors/dentists and source details of company policies via email. Meanwhile, those in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are the most likely to quit their job over a difficult issue.

TOP TIPS FOR WORKERS:

How to handle tricky conversations

• Be considerate - don't bring up the conversation in the corridor when your boss is likely to be busy and distracted. Check their diary beforehand and suggest a convenient time. Choose a room where you won't be disturbed or interrupted, or suggest going out for lunch or a coffee outside the office.
• Prepare for the meeting and plan what you are going to say. Take a step back from the situation and try to look at it as objectively as possible. This can help you to remain calm when approaching tricky subjects.
• When identifying a problem, offer a solution. For example, if you are giving negative feedback about a colleague, suggest ways to improve their performance, through training or informal peer support. You will appear proactive rather than negative or a troublemaker.
• Align your personal goals with your organisation's business objectives. For example, when asking for a promotion, put forward a case for how your promotion will benefit the structure of your team, perhaps by reducing the need to recruit from outside.
• Be discreet. Make sure your boss is the first to know about any issues or problems. Don't complain to all and sundry - you will be seen as unprofessional and lose the respect of your colleagues.

TOP TIPS FOR EMPLOYERS:

How to improve communication with your staff

• Establish a culture of open and transparent communication. Keep employees updated on how the organisation is performing and any major changes within it. Regular team meetings, company away-days and intranets are all good ways of establishing this kind of culture.
• Make yourself available and approachable by operating an open-door policy. Mentoring schemes and open-plan offices can help create a flatter organisational structure that improves communication and stops grievances from festering.
• A formal appraisal procedure, including 360-degree feedback, provides an official channel through which employers and employees can engage in open, honest dialogue and air any problems or issues.
• In any discussion with an employee, trust is key. Be professional and discreet and keep one-to-one discussions confidential.
• Agree an interval at which you will follow up with the employee to make sure the issue has been resolved, and stick to it. By failing to follow up you will convey the message that your employees' well-being is not important to you and they will be less likely to come to you again in the future.