Student
Have you as a student at HiØ experienced unwanted sexual attention or sexual harassment?
HiØ does not tolerate students being subjected to unwanted sexual attention or harassment.
If this has happened to you, however, you have several options:
- Tell the person concerned as soon as possible – if you are able to.
- You can also tell the person in writing.
- Contact an employee you trust and explain the situation, for example a student adviser, course coordinator, programme or course adviser, academic supervisor or lecturer. If it is difficult to do this alone, bring a friend or fellow student.
- Contact SiØ Advice and Health
- Contact a student representative or learning environment consultant.
- Use these options to tell someone (Si ifra).
Regardless: Write down the incident(s). Note the time and place, what happened and your reaction.
Employee
Have you as an employee at HiØ experienced unwanted sexual attention or sexual harassment?
HiØ does not tolerate employees being subjected to unwanted sexual attention or harassment.
If this has happened to you, however, you have several options:
- Tell the person concerned as soon as possible – if you are able to.
- You can also tell the person in writing.
- Contact your immediate superior and explain the situation. If it is difficult to do this alone, bring someone you trust.
- Contact the safety representative.
- Contact an employee at the HR Department or HSE adviser Inge Buch at Stamina Helse for a meeting.
- Use these options to tell someone (Si ifra).
You should in any case prepare your own notes where you write down the incident(s). Note the time and place, what happened and your reaction.
What should managers do?
Managers at all levels at HiØ are responsible for preventing unwelcome/threatening sexual attention at their respective unit, and for taking all contact concerning such behaviour seriously.
The manager must handle such cases immediately. The manager has a duty to provide care and to act.
It is important to be flexible and act quickly when you learn of such cases. Managers must show respect to both parties so that both versions are heard.
Such cases are often difficult to handle because of their sensitive nature. We therefore recommend that you use the management support service available at HiØ.
Immediate action
The manager shall ensure that the harassment stops. This can be done by changing the relationship and context where the harassment takes place, for example by arranging the replacement of a supervisor, offering one or the other party to work from home or use a different office for a time. It is important to set aside time to talk to the parties individually.
The manager should also inform the person who has been subjected to harassment about the possibility of having a confidential conversation with the safety representative, an adviser in the occupational health service, HR, an external lawyer or a representative of SiØ Advice and Health.
Handling the case
It is important to the case processing that a thorough enquiry is made. This includes:
- quickly calling the person who feels harassed in for a meeting; they can of course bring someone to sit in on the meeting.
- calling the person who has been accused of harassment in for a meeting. They shall be informed of their right to bring a third party, cf. the Public Administration Act Section 12.
Documentation
Once the manager has been informed, a case shall immediately be created in Public 360. Meetings and the case processing procedures must be documented. All information about what must be done/follow-up measures and minutes of meetings must be in writing and enclosed with the case. This is important should the case become a disciplinary case.
This type of case is subject to a duty of secrecy, cf. the Freedom of Information Act and Public Administration Act Section 13 (lovdata.no). Note, however, that the accused party has right of access as a party to the case should it become a disciplinary case.
Management support
Since such cases can be particularly challenging for the manager, it can be important to seek advice and support. Below is an overview of who you can contact, depending on the nature of the case/problem.
- The HSE adviser at Stamina Helse, Inge Buch, tel. (+47) 48 30 79 18
- The HR Department
- Lawyers: Frode Samuelsen or Jørgen Samuelsen, contact information: http://www.torget1.no/
- SiØ Advice and Health
What should safety representatives do?
The safety representative is the employees’ representative in cases concerning the working environment. As regards harassment cases, employees are asked to raise the issue with their manager or safety representative, see the Working Environment Act Section 2-3 (letter d). It is important to be there for the person who has experienced harassment.
When someone contacts you, you can:
- Assist the employee by establishing contact with the management at the department or unit in question. It is the employer’s responsibility to handle the case from there.
- Inform the employee about the possibility of talking to:
- The HR Department
- HSE adviser Inge Buch, mobile phone no (+47) 483 07918.
- Lawyers: Frode Samuelsen or Jørgen Samuelsen, contact information: http://www.torget1.no/
- Inform the employee about HiØ’s notification procedures and the possibility of providing notification through the webpage Si ifra.
As a safety representative, are you obliged to notify the matter even if the employee wishes to remain anonymous?
No – the safety representative has a duty of secrecy concerning employees’ personal circumstances. The duty of secrecy does not apply if the person the information concerns consents to the information being disclosed, cf. Section 3-17.Duty of secrecy for safety representatives and members of the working environment committee.
The overall working environment
As a safety representative, your job is to ensure that the employer promotes a good working environment for individuals and the organisation as a whole. In the wake of harassment cases it can be necessary to implement overall working environment measures.
Guidance
As a safety representative, you can contact the HR Department or HSE adviser Inge Buch at Stamina Helse.