Some Existing Arbitration Policies Would Not Meet Commission’s Recently Proposed Standards

In our review of employers’ arbitration policies, we found that some do not meet the fairness standards recently proposed by the Commission on the Future of Worker-Management Relations. Almost All Employers Reported Using ADR Approaches, but Few Use or Plan to Use Arbitration

Almost 90 percent of employers that had more than 100 employees and filed EEO reports with EEOC in 1992 use at least one ADR approach to resolve discrimination complaints. Almost 40 percent of these employers use a trained mediator from within the company to help resolve disputes. Only about 10 percent of employers use arbitration. Arbitration Is Frequently the Final Step in a Policy Including Other ADR Approaches

A dispute resolution policy frequently has a series of steps, such as those discussed below, that can be linked to different ADR approaches. Firms With Some Workers Covered by Collective Bargaining Agreements Are More Likely to Report Using Arbitration

Since arbitration has long been a feature of grievance procedures in the collective bargaining arena, employers that have collective bargaining agreements with some of their workers might be more likely to use arbitration with those not covered by collective bargaining. 1. 2. 2. This would not include formal complaint investigations by government agencies, such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). 1.
Why GAO Did This Study

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the: (1) extent to which private-sector employers use alternative dispute resolution (ADR) approaches in resolving discrimination complaints of employees not covered by collective bargaining agreements; and (2) fairness of private-sector employers' arbitration policies.

What GAO Found

GAO found that: (1) in fiscal year 1994, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) received over 90,000 discrimination complaints from employees; (2) ADR approaches include negotiation, fact finding, peer review, internal mediation, external mediation, and arbitration; (3) almost all employers with more than 100 employees use one or more ADR approaches to resolve discrimination complaints; (4) some employers' arbitration policies do not meet the fairness standards proposed by the Commission on the Future of Worker-Management Relations; (5) almost 40 percent of private-sector employers use a trained mediator from within the company to help resolve disputes, and only 10 percent of these employers use arbitration; (6) firms that have some workers covered by collective bargaining agreements are more likely to use arbitration; and (7) arbitration is usually the final step in a grievance policy, which includes other ADR approaches.