Work environment and equal opportunities for students

Lund University has a responsibility to work preventively to help students avoid ill-health or accidents during their studies and to otherwise work to achieve a good work environment. The higher education institution, in its capacity as an education provider, is also to work to prevent discrimination and reprisals or other obstacles to the equal rights and opportunities of individuals in connection with the education provided within the organisation.

Shortcuts to page content:

• Roles in work environment management and providing equal opportunities for students
• Occurrence reporting
• Student welfare reviews

Roles in work environment management and providing equal opportunities for students

Outlined below are the responsibilities of the different roles in the work environment management for students and providing equal opportunities: the education provider (i.e. head of department or equivalent), students and student health and safety representatives.

The education provider’s responsibility

As head of a public authority, the Vice-Chancellor of Lund University has overall responsibility for ensuring that the work environment and work on equal opportunities meet the requirements of current legislation. 

The Vice-Chancellor’s responsibility for this matter cannot be delegated, but the Vice-Chancellor is able to delegate certain duties associated with work environment management to managers, team leaders or other employees.

The duties related to the work on students’ work environment and equal opportunities are often allocated to the head of department/equivalent. 

Information about the allocation of duties and responsibilities on the HR Pages (in Swedish)

In its role as an education provider, the University is to engage in systematic preventive work against discrimination (SFAD) for all students who attend or apply to the University.

Systematic preventive work against discrimination (Swedish acronym SFAD) at Lund University on the HR Pages

Students’ responsibilities in work environment management and equal opportunities work

Everyone working or studying at Lund University is expected to act in accordance with Lund University's work environment policy, which entails a responsibility to contribute to a good working and study environment. This means, for example, that everyone is to take responsibility for their behaviour and that no form of threat, violence, harassment or sexual harassment is allowed. It also means following instructions and pointing out risks in the work environment. Students who wish to report work environment and/or equal opportunities occurrences do so in the IA system, as do employees. 

In case of emergency

Student health and safety representatives’ responsibilities in work environment management

According to the Work Environment Act, students are to be given the opportunity to participate in the systematic work environment management at the higher education institution. To put this into practice, student health and safety representatives are appointed by the student unions of the respective faculties. The student health and safety representative does not have any personal responsibility for work environment management; rather, their role is to represent students and collaborate with the head of department/equivalent in preventive work.

Occurrence reporting

Lund University is to be a safe and secure environment for everyone working or studying there. In order for the University to be able to work preventively but also provide the right support if something goes wrong, it is important that students report any occurrences to the University. 

Incidents and occupational injuries

Students report work environment-related occurrences in the IA system. Once an occurrence has been reported, the case is allocated to the function decided by the respective faculty. Responsibility for investigating and dealing with an occurrence will therefore fall to different roles depending on the faculty. Each faculty (and sometimes each department) has a work environment coordinator who can provide support.

Definitions of various work environment-related occurrences: accidents, risk of injury or ill-health during your studies on lunduniversity.lu.se

Information about the IA system – refer students here to report an incident digitally (on lunduniversity.lu.se)

Harassment and sexual harassment

Students can report incidents of harassment and sexual harassment through the IA system or by informing a member of University staff. If there are grounds to suspect that a disciplinary offence in the form of harassment or sexual harassment has been committed by a student against another student or against employees of the University, this is to be reported to the Vice-Chancellor without delay. 

Information about deciding whether to submit a report

In addition to reporting, a department or equivalent may need to take further steps to investigate the circumstances of the alleged harassment and, where appropriate, take measures to prevent future harassment. 

Definition of harassment and sexual harassment on the HR Pages (in Swedish)

Refer students who are looking for more information on how to deal with cases of harassment and sexual harassment to the information page on lu.se.

Harassment and sexual harassment on lunduniversity.lu.se

Student welfare reviews

At least once per academic year, students’ organisational and psychosocial work environment is to be investigated through student welfare reviews. 

These student welfare reviews take the form of structured discussions, with the aim of investigating the factors that affect students in their work environment and to discover potential risks in the work environment before they cause ill-health among students. The purpose is also to investigate, discover and analyse whether there is a risk of discrimination or reprisals, or whether there are other obstacles to individuals’ equal rights and opportunities within the organisation. 

These student welfare reviews are to be based upon relevant information from course evaluations, reported incidents and accidents, relevant statistics and so on. 

The person responsible is always to carry out the student welfare reviews along with a student health and safety representative and/or another student representative. However, the University is always responsible for the organisation, planning and carrying out of the student welfare reviews.

More information, guidelines, templates and support material for student welfare reviews on the HR Pages (in Swedish)