Speak up

You can report it using an online form here!

If you're experiencing bullying, harassment, discrimination, offensive or inappropriate behaviour, you might want to speak to a fellow student or member of staff. This can help you consider what's happened and how you've reacted before you decide whether to take the matter further.

The member of staff is bound by professional secrecy. People who receive reports of bullying and discrimination will provide support, guidance and help. Students should be confident that they'll be met with knowledge and understanding within a confidential setting.

If serious issues are uncovered, and you don't feel strong enough to take the matter further yourself, the person you're talking to can take the matter further if they've got your consent.

• Speak to a member of staff you trust.
• Speak to the head of studies for your programme.
• Speak to the dean of the faculty.
• Contact the student chaplain or student deacon.
• Contact the student ombudsperson.
• Speak to the president.
• You can also talk to your student representative or representatives from the Student Council.

Unwanted sexual attention can be verbal, non-verbal and/or physical.

The Equality Act prohibits sexual harassment. The Equality and Anti-Discrimination Ombud states, among other things, the following:

Sexual attention becomes harassment when it:

• is unwanted
• is troublesome
• continues after the recipient has said no
• has negative consequences of a physical, mental or work-related nature

Other factors that come into play:

how serious the act was time and place for the act whether the act has been going on for some time dependency and power differences between the harasser and the person being harassed

Examples of behaviour that may be sexual harassment:

• unnecessary touching and picking
• intrusive comments about body, clothing or private life
• sexual advances, suggestions and innuendoes
• displaying pornographic images, whistling and body movements that have sexual undertones

Unwanted sexual attention can occur between employees, between students and employees and/or between students. We've got to take the problem seriously, regardless of which category is affected. You need to let VID know about such cases so we can deal with unwanted sexual attention that affects the working/study conditions and/or is related to the working/study conditions.

Bullying

Bullying is when someone is repeatedly and over time exposed to negative behaviour by one or more people in a way that means they can't defend themselves against these actions. – The Norwegian Labour Inspection Authority.

Bullying can include harassment, teasing, exclusion, hurtful taunts, being ignored, having work tasks taken away, and similar things. It's typical for there to be an imbalance of power, making it difficult for the person who feels bullied to defend themselves.

It can also be defined as bullying when:

• The actions are experienced as deeply unfair and offensive by the person affected
• The negative actions are repeated over time, or the consequences of these persist over time
• The actions can't reasonably be considered something employees and students have to put up with, and therefore a predictable part of the working relationship

Discrimination

Unfair or unreasonable treatment of individuals based on their gender, religion, ethnicity, nationality, or disability – Store norske leksikon, 2016.

The person in charge at your faculty has a special responsibility to follow up on the matter with the head of studies. However, you can also go directly to the principal if the person you want to report is this manager, if there's too close a working relationship between this manager and the person carrying out the unwanted behaviour, or if the manager doesn't take the complaint seriously.

All such cases must be handled with strict confidentiality, both during and after the case is closed. All employees involved in case processing have a duty of confidentiality, including within VID.

Anyone accused of something has the right to know about the accusation, to have access to the documents, and to express their views. VID, therefore, recommends that accusations are made in writing. Privacy must be safeguarded, and the university college's management must decide how much access the parties involved should have. Often, the person who reported the matter won't have access to the further processing of the case.

VID aims to resolve cases involving bullying and discrimination immediately and at the lowest possible level.

The person responsible at VID will call the parties to separate meetings where they can express their views. Both parties can be assisted by a union representative or a support person.

Reporting to the police

If the incident is a criminal offence, you should consider reporting it to the police. VID can also choose to report a case to the police on its own initiative.

False accusations

Please be aware that it can be a criminal offence to accuse someone on false grounds. An obviously incorrect notification or a notification intended to cause harm may have consequences for the employee's personnel situation or the student's right to study.

You can report something anonymously to the university by phone or letter.

The Student Ombud or a solicitor can also pass on a report.

It's important you're aware that anonymous accusations against staff or fellow students will rarely lead to sanctions. This is because the university will usually need to know who you are to follow up on the matter.

Read our guidelines about unwanted and distressing sexual attention. (Norwegian only)