Satisfaction among AU staff is high – but results in a few areas are both regrettable and disappointing, says the university’s rector

Flipping through the latest assessment from Aarhus University, the picture is marked by green and grey arrows, signifying progress and stability compared to the last survey conducted in 2022.

88 percent of staff are generally satisfied with their work, and just as many wish to be employed at AU next year. 84 percent feel motivated and engaged.

Aarhus University's rector Brian Bech Nielsen is also generally satisfied with this year's results, to put it in WPA terms. When asked about his take on this year’s WPA, the rector began by highlighting the response rate, which has been increasing since 2019 and reached 78 percent this year.

"This shows an increasing support for this assessment. High response rates also give us more accurate picture, and in addition to illustrates an underlying commitment to contributing to the development of our work environment. I am very pleased with that.”

"When we look at the evaluations, it is clear that satisfaction, loyalty, motivation, and the willingness to recommend the university as a workplace are consistently rated highly. Work tasks are perceived as meaningful, and that's very positive," the rector said.  

When asked what he believes has contributed to this progress, the rector pointed to the interaction between staff and management:

“When we look at the areas where the overall score has improved, the improvement in scores on the question of day-to-day management really jumps out. We’ve been consistent about working on leadership development and creating a better work culture, so I hope that this is one of the factors that’s reflected in the numbers," the rector said, while also emphasising that this is just one of several possible explanations.

Regrettable and disappointing scores in some areas

Although the rector is pleased that progress is being made in many areas, there’s still room for improvement, he emphasised. As in previous years, this WPA asked staff whether they had been subjected to any inappropriate behaviour at work. And this part of the report certainly doesn't make for uplifting reading.

“If we look at staff who have experienced harsh, offensive, or derogatory language, the figure has increased from 10 to 12 percent since the last WPA. I have to admit I find this both regrettable and disappointing. We have consistently, and for many years, been very explicit about the importance of maintaining a culture of civility in the workplace – that we treat each other with decency with mutual respect – so it saddens me to see this increase,” the rector said.

“All of 866 individuals have experienced this. That’s quite a lot.”

When it comes to bullying, the number remains unchanged. 4 percent, or 287 employees, state that they experienced bullying in the past year. Something the rector is also not happy with. He said:

"The fact that the level is unchanged and slightly lower than comparable institutions is no excuse, because bullying doesn't belong at Aarhus University: we don't treat other people like that."

In addition, 42 staff members report having received threats of violence, while 8 employees were subjected to physical violence, compared to none in the 2022 WPA.

"It's almost unbearable. This is something we need to put a stop to,” the rector said.

Sexism at AU

For several years, Aarhus University has surveyed how many employees experience unwanted sexual attention in the workplace. In this WPA, that number increased from 1 to 2 percent, corresponding to 120 employees. For the first time this year, the survey includes an investigation into how many employees have experienced sexism. This is directly derived from VIVE's report on sexism at Danish universities, which was published last year. According to the report, 35 percent of female PhD students at Aarhus University experienced gender-related offensive behaviour. In this year's workplace assessment, 376 employees, or 5 percent, said they had experienced sexism in the past year.

"While the number is lower than in VIVE’s report, it’s still high, and it’s still unacceptable," the rector said.

The workplace assessment also reveals that, among staff who report having experienced harassment, the majority state that the issue remains unresolved. What are your thoughts on this?

"I noted that most people who experienced abusive behaviour report that they spoke to a colleague. While a colleague can offer valuable support - which is incredibly important - they may not be in a position to actually resolve the issue. That’s why it’s important that the matter is brought before someone who can actually do something about it," the rector said, adding:

“If someone doesn’t feel comfortable approaching your manager, I encourage them to speak to someone else – for example, a union representative – so that we can get the problem out in the open. Because if we don't know something is happening, it's hard to intervene. I hope we can build the necessary culture of trust where we talk openly about it. I think that's what it will take to improve the situation."

Stress – a household name  

For many years, there has been a focus on reducing stress among the university's employees, and the WPA does show a slight improvement since 2022. Despite this, one in five employees (21 percent) say they experience stress that makes them uncomfortable. Almost one in four (23 percent) don't feel there is a balance between their tasks and the time they have available to complete them. When it comes to work-related sick leave, the situation is basically the status quo. 8 percent, or 594 employees, report that they have taken sick leave in the past year due to workplace conditions. Of these, 381 people state that it is due to workload or other work demands, while 178 point to collaboration or relationships with colleagues or managers as the reason.

"Stress is still a very big challenge for us. Many efforts have been made to reduce stress, but we haven't yet found the silver bullet. And unfortunately, to the best of my knowledge, no one else has either. We know that stress and sick leave are related, so we must continue to focus on this consistently," the rector said.

Stress and an imbalance between time and tasks affect staff across the board. But it is particularly pronounced among VIPs – both among associate professors and professors, who are called Senior VIPs in the WPA, among PhD students and also part time academic staff (DVIP).  The rector doesn’t have a straightforward answer to why that is. Part of the explanation may be a strong commitment to the work and the relatively flexible scheduling that applies to this group, he said.

"And stress is not just a consequence of work, it's a consequence of life," the rector also noted. Here as well, he sees leadership and transparency as part of the solution:  

"We need to make it something we talk openly about with colleagues and management; I think that's crucial to improving the situation."

Women not as satisfied as their male colleagues

On several parameters, female employees express less satisfaction and well-being than their male colleagues. The rector noticed this too, he said:

"Yes, there are 23 questions where men score higher than women and 7 questions where women score higher than men.

This shows that we still have a lot of work to do, which is why I am pleased that we have adopted an action plan (for diversity and gender equality, ed.) and have also set up committees for diversity and gender equality centrally and at the faculties.”

SDDs get a red arrow

Although 77 percent of employees say they have good opportunities to develop in their work, fewer employees than before say they see the staff development dialogue (SDD) as an important and relevant part of their development. This is the only area that gets a red arrow in the report, indicating a decline in satisfaction relative to 2022.

"We don't know why it declined this year. We've had a strong focus on career development – and it’s included in our new strategy. SDDs are intended as a dynamic tool, so we need to revisit the concept and see if we need to change anything," the rector said.

Consistency is key

Now it's time to follow up on the workplace assessment in each area. On which parameters would you particularly like to see a development over the next few years?

“I hope the overall trend continues, so that we can further improve our ability to deal with stress and foster a high level of satisfaction among our employees. And I also hope we see a significant decline in offensive conduct."  

The rector emphasised the importance of maintaining consistent focus on the quality of our work environment and culture – even in areas where the measurements are positive.

"We can see in the underlying figures that areas that were characterised by lower overall satisfaction in the last assessment have actually improved quite nicely in the new survey, while those that previously had a high score have now fallen slightly. So even when you're doing well in the assessment, you still have to work hard to stay at a high level," the rector said.  

This text is machine translated and post-edited by Cecillia Jensen.