In my opinion, a good work environment is first and foremost something we all – employees and managers – create together locally in our units. This is the best place to deal with the specific challenges and problems that arise, and to find the best solutions for our collective working life.

To create and maintain a good work environment, it is important to have dialogue, action and a clear procedure for what to do if you feel that something needs to be changed. AU’s occupational health and safety organisation plays an important role in this respect.

Just this month, the university's occupational health and safety representatives and managers got together for a morning seminar on the initiative of the senior management team. The theme was workplace culture with a special focus on offensive behaviour. We got ideas on how to get a constructive dialogue going about how we can end offensive behaviour. An important basis for this is a good workplace culture where everyone can feel safe and secure at work. This requires that we have employees and managers who contribute to creating a good work environment in all corners of the organisation. As managers, we must lead the way, and we must take the initiative to start the dialogue at the local level, together with the entire occupational health and safety organisation.

This means that as occupational health and safety representative, you play a key role, not least in your collaboration with management. 

Soon you can stand for election

There are elections to the occupational health and safety organisation every three years. The next election will take place early next year, but the period for announcing candidacy starts in December. I would like to encourage all employees in the administration to consider standing for election – whether this would be your first time or or you would be seeking re-election.

Let me take this opportunity to thank all of the current occupational health and safety representatives for their efforts. You have done a great job over the past three years.

If you want to read more about what the role of occupational health and safety representative involves, read on in this article, where business controller at Nat-Tech Susanna Holm Nielsen talks about her work as a occupational health and safety representative. 

• Read the article: "Our wellbeing at work is important"

In the fact box below, you can also see some of the issues the occupational health and safety organisation works with.

I'm looking forward to welcoming new and returning representatives to the occupational health and safety organisation after the election ends on 1 March 2021. 

Fact box:

• THE WPA An occupational health and safety representative helps prepare, implement and follow up on the WPA. This is laid down in the Danish working Environment Authority's rules. Work on the psychological work environment will often take place in collaboration with representatives of the Liaison Committee.
• ‘Temperature Gauge’ Occupational health and safety reps are proactive in relation to the psychological and physical work environment. This can help management identify areas in which the work environment can be improved. As employee-elected representatives, they may pass on information from units and employees who are experiencing challenges in relation to the work environment and contribute to finding solutions.
• Help and support for colleagues Anyone can turn to an occupational health and safety representative for help. This may be in connection with challenges in the working environment, for example, but also in relation to long-term absence/illness or in other difficult situations in which AMR can be a support for the affected colleague.
• Moving, renovations, work-related accidents and evacuation drills are other areas that occupational health and safety representatives are involved in.

Are you thinking about standing for election as an occupational health and safety rep?

• Read more here. (Note: You must be logged onto an AU network or VPN in order to access the page)