Harassment and Inappropriate Treatment

Please note, this is a translation and only the original Finnish document is binding.

Instructions for Students

Lapland University of Applied Sciences (Lapland UAS) has laid down ethical guidelines, according to which we do not tolerate inappropriate behaviour, harassment, discrimination, intimidation, or violence. We take immediate action and use the necessary means to resolve problems and disturbances. Learn about our CODE OF CONDUCT.

We have created guidelines for our community to prepare us for the mentioned situations. This web page contains instructions for students. Similar instructions for personnel are available on the intranet.

What do harassment and mistreatment mean?

Harassment and mistreatment typically involve systematic and degrading activity or behaviour. They may occur between students and between personnel and student(s).

The Non-discrimination Act defines harassment as behaviour through which a person’s human dignity is deliberately infringed. This refers to degrading, humiliating, intimidating, hostile, or aggressive action, behaviour, or atmosphere related to a person’s sexual orientation, origin, or disability. More information available on the Non-discrimination Ombudsman’s web pages

Harassment and mistreatment may include repeated threats, intimidation, malicious and suggestive messages, degrading and scornful speech, continued and unjustified criticising and hindering of studies, questioning one’s reputation or status, isolating a person from the study community, and sexual harassment. More information available on the web service of the  Occupational Safety and Health Administration

However, all conflict situations do not involve inappropriate treatment or harassment. When studying or working, we encounter different people and opinions. Misinterpretations are also possible. When studying together, it is therefore advisable to agree on joint work rules and to ensure that everyone subscribes to them.

The following actions are not considered mistreatment or harassment, as they are included in Lapland UAS’s practices: having diverse interpretations related to the evaluation of studies, initiating a justified disciplinary measure, handling study-related problem situations, conducting study-related supervisory discussions, and introducing a concern into discussion.

More information on the rectification of study evaluations and credit transfers and on the disciplinary procedure is available in Lapland UAS’s Degree Regulations. More information in the Degree Regulations (pdf)
 

How to proceed if you are subjected to harassment or mistreatment?

You should address harassment and mistreatment at once.  

1. Make it clear that the behaviour is inappropriate and ask the perpetrator to stop. It is possible that the person does not even realise that the behaviour is offensive. If you feel that it is difficult to bring the issue up, see paragraph 3 below.
2. If you suspect that you are dealing with a crime, you should contact the authorities. Their job is to investigate the possibility of criminal activity.
3. Write down the inappropriate situations and your responses (when and where the incidents occurred, what happened, and who was present) and retain potential letters, emails, text messages, and publications.
4. If you wish to discuss the situation with someone or need support in bringing the issue up, you can seek advice from teachers, university study counsellors, the competence manager, or the harassment contact person of Student Union ROTKO. The discussions are always confidential, and no further measures are taken without your consent. ROTKO’s harassment contact persons are introduced on the Student Union’sweb page.
5. If the criteria for harassment or mistreatment are met or the conflict persists after you have brought it up, you may report it officially to the competence manager.

Please take care of your personal well-being.  Help is offered for instance by FSHS and university social worker services.

If your own action has been considered inappropriate

Another person’s feelings cannot be treated lightly, because the line between experienced mistreatment and daily contradictions is not always clear. You should immediately stop the behavior that has been considered inappropriate, even if you don’t feel that you are guilty of mistreatment. Write down the events on your part. You have the right to be heard and to state your own interpretation of what has happened.

Please take care of your personal well-being.  Help is offered for instance by FSHS and university social worker services.
 

Official harassment report

Harassment reports are always investigated and all parties have the right to be heard. This is to ensure the legal protection of everyone involved. If harassment or persecution involves a deliberate infringement of physical integrity or a threat thereof, the case is always handed to the authorities, see paragraph 3. The investigation procedure is started by the competence manager or by the manager’s supervisor if the competence manager is unavailable.

The competence manager initiates the procedure by listening to the parties one by one. The purpose of the hearings is to find out what has happened and the arguments behind the events. The discussions are recorded.

1. In the first phase of the investigation procedure, the competence manager calls both parties and their potential support persons to a joint discussion. The discussion is confidential.
   
2. In the discussion, the events are addressed, the nature and severity of the harassment are assessed, and an agreement about corrective measures is sought. A memo of the discussion is written, and it is signed by all the participants. The memo is to contain the date of a follow-up meeting to be held no later than six months after the discussion. The memo is stored according to the instructions on case and information management at Lapland UAS. More information is available at Processing of Sensitive Information.
   
3. If the first phase of the procedure does not lead to a solution approved by the parties involved, the previous investigation group is supplemented with representatives of Lapland UAS’s top management and with specialists necessitated by the nature of the case. If needed, the group may use a specialist service for the investigation and mediation.
   
4. If the harassment is investigated by the authorities, it is advisable to discuss how studying is enabled during the criminal investigation. Depending on the situation, special arrangements are made in the work premises, among other things. It is also advisable to agree how the parties interact with each other in the study environment. The competence manager is in charge of the special arrangements.

Disciplinary measures

If the discussions to settle the situation do not produce a desired outcome, Lapland UAS has the authority and means provided in section 38 of the Universities of Applied Sciences Act to investigate the issue and, when necessary, to take action against the perpetrator of mistreatment or harassment. A notice or warning may be issued to the perpetrator of inappropriate treatment. Harassment may also lead to fixed-term suspension. More information available in the Degree Regulations(pdf).

Processing of sensitive information

Lapland UAS is to store sensitive information and other personal data in separate registers, and sensitive material is deleted immediately when there are no statutory grounds for keeping it. However, the deletion is to be done at the latest four years after the information was entered into the register. The processing of personal data is governed by the applicable data protection legislation, unless otherwise provided in the Universities of Applied Sciences Act.

Case management and document processing at Lapland UAS are subject to the regulations on case and information management (case management instructions, archiving and information management plan, other up-to-date case management regulations). In addition, instructions on the processing of LUC Information Administration’s on the processing of data materials and other information security-related regulations are followed.

Privacy notice

The rector has confirmed the guidelines on October 3, 2023.

The harassment contact persons of Student Union ROTKO

The harassment contact persons of Student Union ROTKO support you when you feel like having been bullied or harassed by a fellow student or the staff. You can also contact the harassment contact person if you yourself witness harassment and want to discuss it.

Harassment contact persons advise and support in resolving harassment situations. Conversations are completely confidential, and possible further measures shall be taken together. Harassment can be, for example, discrimination, unequal treatment when it comes to evaluation, singling out, sexual harassment, threatening, or any verbal or physical behaviour which the object of harassment considers abusive.

The student union ROTKO has harassment contact persons (= häirintäyhdyshenkilö) whom students can contact in possible cases of harassment. You can find their names on ROTKOs webpage.