Code of conduct and policy for offensive behaviour

Offensive behaviour is unwanted conduct that has the effect of violating a person's dignity. This includes the degrading treatment of individuals or groups. Offensive behaviour can be, for example:

Behaviour that:

• is abusive, offensive, patronising and/or inappropriate to the person(s) concerned, either in speech or action,
• creates an intimidating, hostile, humiliating or disruptive work environment for the person/people concerned,
• through rejection or acceptance, forms the basis for decisions that negatively impact another person,
• may involve an element of coercion towards the person/people concerned.

Sexual harassment is unacceptable behaviour, both between equal and unequal parties (e.g. colleagues, managers and employees, students, supervisor and student).

Sexual harassment is, for example:

• Physical (unwanted touching, advances or close physical contact)
• Verbal (e.g. written or spoken sexual comments, sexual suggestions or sounds)
• Visual (e.g. showing sexual images, games, films, sex toys, facial expressions or sexual gestures).

Bullying is behaviour that, over time, undermines the dignity and self-respect of individuals or groups. Conflicts can arise in workplaces and study environments, and they need to be resolved respectfully before they develop into more serious conflicts.

Conflicts that continue without being addressed can escalate and have strong negative consequences for those directly affected by the conflict and the group around them.

Bullying can be, for example:

• Repeated verbal abuse over a long period of time,
• When one or more people regularly and over a long period of time - or repeatedly in a severe manner - subject another person or people to offensive behaviour which they perceive as hurtful or degrading,
• The power relationship between bully and victim may be characterised by a perceived or actual imbalance that makes it difficult for the victim to defend themselves,
• Hostility or silence in response to questions or attempts at conversation / Slander or exclusion from the social and academic community.

Discrimination can be condescending behaviour or behaviour that otherwise negatively affects individuals or groups, for example, based on their gender, age, ethnicity, religion, political opinions, sexual orientation, nationality, social or ethnic origin or other personal preferences.

Business Academy Aarhus expects everyone at the Academy to strive for professional and welcoming communities because this creates value, innovation and a good learning environment at the Academy. Discrimination can be, for example:

• Direct (exclusion, restriction or discrimination of a person based on their gender, sexual orientation, skin colour, etc.)
• Indirect (a practice that leads to the exclusion, restriction or preferential treatment of people of a certain gender, sexual orientation, skin colour, etc.)

Stalking is a repetitive, systematic and unwanted pursuit or surveillance. Stalking can range from weeks to years and can occur in both physical and digital forms.

Threatening behaviour can create fear. This applies regardless of whether the threatening behaviour is expressed verbally or non-verbally - for example, as spoken threats or threatening body language. Threatening behaviour can be directed directly at you, but it can also be threats, or the presence of threats, to others.

The student counsellors will offer you a meeting within 3 working days (longer waiting time during holidays).

You will be able to talk about your experiences in a confidential space. Together, we'll find out what your needs and options are for the best way forward.

Write to the student counselling at guidance@baaa.dk

You can contact the responsible Head of Department or Head of Programme for your programme.

If you contact your head of department/programme about a perceived violation, your head of department/programme is obligated to investigate the matter thoroughly*. The head of department/programme must be impartial in their investigation of the case and exercise discretion towards all parties involved.

This means that both you and the other student(s)/employee(s) involved will be invited to have an individual confidential interview. You can bring a representative, such as a parent or friend, with you to the interview.

In many cases, it will be the head of department/programme who decides whether a breach of the code of conduct has occurred. If there is a breach of the code of conduct, it can lead to disciplinary action.

The head of department/programme will decide what to do next

Find contact information here

*Please note that when you report a perceived offence and a disciplinary case is initiated, you cannot, for legal reasons, expect that you will:

• be anonymous to the person the enquiry is about
• get any insights into what's happening in the case

You can contact the Head of Quality and Student Life with your experience.

The Head of Quality and Student Life is responsible for quality work throughout the Academy and is the Head of Student Counselling.

The Head of Quality and Student Life is bound by confidentiality, so will not share your experiences with others unless you ask them to.

See contact information here

All students can book parish priest Malene Vangsøe Bitsch for a conversation.

Read more and book an appointment here

If you have experienced offensive behaviour on campus, you can have a confidential conversation and get professional advice from Studenterrådgivningen.

All counsellors at the Studenterrådgivningen are bound by confidentiality. From the time you contact them, it takes a maximum of 2 working days before you get a call from one of their counsellors. The first conversation lasts approximately 1 hour. During the conversation, the counsellor will decide with you whether further conversations are needed.

Should you wish to contact your educational institution about an offending incident, they can also help you with that. You might have experienced something that is important for the programme to know or act upon. We can then act as a representative for you.

Studenterrådgivningen can be contacted by phone 7026 7500 (all weekdays 9-12). Remember to tell the secretary that you're phoning about the "Tal-trygt-tilbuddet" offer so that you get a meeting within 2 working days.