Action plan for Health, safety and the environment

Action plan for HSE, 2023-2026

Health, Safety and the Environment - A good working environment for everyone.

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Espen Senneset

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A good working environment for everyone

The University of Bergen shall have a culture in which health, safety, the environment and emergency preparedness are preventative and health-promoting. This means that UiB must ensure:

a fully satisfactory working and learning environment
diversity, openness and inclusion
accessible, functional and safe workplaces and buildings
continuous and systematic HSE work through the active participation of employees, safety representatives and leaders.

This means that HSE must be clearly organised at all levels and that the working environment must be surveyed, risk assessed and followed up in accordance with regulatory requirements and internal rules.

HSE - a shared responsibility

The working environment is created through day-to-day interaction and dialogue. All staff and students have a responsibility to actively participate in this. Employees and students must have the necessary training and sufficient expertise to manage HSE challenges within their own work and study situation.

HSE is a leader responsibility at all levels and is an integral part of all leadership. Safety delegates fulfil a supervisory function and are collaborators for the leaders. It is important that both leaders and safety delegates have good expertise in systematic HSE work. When risk factors on occupational health issues are being triggered, the employer shall ensure assistance from The Occupational Health Service.

Clear roles and responsibilities with a mutual understanding of and respect for the various functions, clear organisation of and predictability in the work are prerequisites for sustaining and developing a good working and learning environment. The university’s leaders, safety delegates, staff and students must, together, actively contribute to the development of the working environment.

HSE goals

The Action Plan for Health, Safety and the Environment is based on the university’s strategy 2023-2030 ‘Knowledge That Shapes Society’ and includes three HSE goals.

UiB shall be characterised by:

Good and inclusive working communities
Safe and functional workplaces
Good safety culture and emergency preparedness

Each HSE goal is a priority area that is specified through sub-goals for the period 2023–2026. The goals are realised through central measures and local HSE action plans at faculty and department level, and through various forms of interaction between units and levels.

The following UiB governing documents also support the HSE goals:

The University’s Emergency Preparedness Plan
Management system for Information Security and Data Protection
Management system for securing buildings and valuable objects
Action Plan for Diversity, Inclusion and Gender Equality
Action plan for climate and environmental work
Masterplan for Properties and Campus

The student learning environment is specifically addressed in the Action Plan for Learning Environment.

The HSE Action Plan is intended to contribute to ensuring that everyone working at UiB is safeguarded and is not subjected to negative impacts due to their work.

Priority areas for health, safety and the environment for the period 2023-2026

A. Priority area: Good and inclusive working communities

A. PRIORITY AREA: GOOD AND INCLUSIVE WORKING COMMUNITIES UiB must have a strong and vibrant university democracy. Good procedures, channels and meeting places for communication will ensure participation. Generosity, openness, diversity and dialogue are to characterise UiB’s working community internally and in collaboration with our surroundings. UiB has a strong international profile that includes colleagues and fellow students from all around the world. The working environment shall be inspiring, inclusive and health promoting, and the integrity and dignity of the individual should be safeguarded. This requires good understanding of and insight into conditions that affect our working and learning environment among all our employees, students and leaders.
Sub-goals	Main activities	Responsible
Sub-goal 1: UiB shall have a good psychosocial working environment	Annually map and follow up the psychosocial working environment (HSE meeting) at all units. Develop tools and support for work with the psychosocial working environment, which must be put into use at all units. Facilitate, conduct and follow up annual employee appraisals interviews for all employees, including clarifying local organisation and the follow-up of these. Conduct systematic safeguarding and follow-up for younger academic staff. Facilitate so that new employees are welcomed in a good way. Offer internationally recruited colleagues Norwegian language training promptly after appointment, and facilitate in a way that makes participation in the training easy. Translate important information for employees into English.	Division of Human Resources Faculty Department
Sub-goal 2: UiB shall have an inclusive working environment	Strengthen the focus on diversity and inclusive working life by i.a.: - strengthening leaders’ competence within diversity and inclusive working life, sick-leave follow-up and facilitation for individual employees - all units must put mental health and addiction prevention work, such as drug and gambling addiction, on the agenda for increased inclusion and to reduce the risk of exclusion - further development of data on life phases and sick leave in order to implement targeted measures for inclusion.	Division of Human Resources Division of Financial Services Faculty Department
Sub-goal 3: UiB shall have transparent processes and good participation for a vibrant university democracy	Manage and develop the university community’s many bodies, arenas and meeting places that stimulate engagement, participation, debate and experience sharing internally at the units and across academic and organisational boundaries.	Rector/University Director Faculty Department
Sub-goal 4: UiB shall meet changes in a constructive manner	Clarify responsibilities, roles and tasks in the HSE and working environment work by: - training and information for leaders and all employees - further develop the arenas for information, participation and co-determination at the units - set clear goals and carry out risk assessments in the event of changes.	Division of Human Resources Faculty Department

B. Priority area: Safe and functional workplaces

B. PRIORITY AREA: SAFE AND FUNCTIONAL WORKPLACES UiB has a large, demanding portfolio of buildings. The use changes regularly and new buildings are being built. The relevant requirements concerning good building standards, universal design, indoor climate and ergonomics must be observed. Digital tools, scientific equipment and research and teaching facilities must be safe and functional both on campus and when working from elsewhere.
Sub-goals	Main activities	Responsible
Sub-goal 1: UiB shall ensure that the workplaces and buildings that UiB dispose and develops have proper, satisfactory working and learning environments that comply with current legislation and good participation processes	Establish and develop user-friendly workplaces on campus that contribute to good working conditions for carrying out the University’s core activities and support functions. Map and follow-up the physical working environment (HSE round) annually at all units. HSE rounds must also be carried out during renovations. Evaluate and follow-up the use of the home office scheme for technical/administrative staff.	Estate and Facilities Management Division Division of Human Resources Faculty Department
Sub-goal 2: UiB shall have a good digital working environment	Develop good work processes and ensure that all employees have well-functioning work platforms and effective digital tools. Offer and strengthen the digital competence of leaders and employees with a user-oriented approach.	IT Division Division of Human Resources UiB Learning Lab University of Bergen Library Faculty Department

C. Priority area: Good safety culture and emergency preparedness

C. PRIORITY AREA: GOOD SAFETY CULTURE AND EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS UiB’s work on safety and emergency preparedness must be founded on, among other things, preventative and systematic HSE work, good knowledge about risk conditions and good procedures when working both on and off campus. This will contribute to reducing the consequences of adverse events in order to safeguard our values in everyday work and in extraordinary situations.
Sub-goal	Main activities	Responsible
Sub-goal 1: UiB shall have a clear safety and emergency preparedness organisation	Review responsibilities and roles to ensure a good and comprehensive emergency and security organisation. Regularly update and follow-up risk and vulnerability analyses (ROS) related to safety and emergency preparedness. Carry out warning and emergency preparedness exercises and emphasise internal and external collaboration exercises.	Rector/University Director Division of Human Resources Estate and Facilities Management Division IT Division Faculty Department
Sub-goal 2: UiB shall have good understanding of HSE risk	Carry out/update HSE risk assessments annually at all units and implement measures to safeguard employees’ health, safety and environment. Ensure good risk management through safe handling of biological and chemical hazards, as well as radiation sources.	Division of Human Resources Estate and Facilities Management Division IT Division Faculty Department

All units shall annually:

Conduct HSE surveys, risk assessments and prioritise measures
Draw up/revise a local HSE action plan based on UiB's HSE Action Plan and implement measures
Review the systematic HSE work and report to a superior body (internal control)

Download the action plan in pdf

Information about HSE at UiB

31.10.2023