Cooperation and employee representative duties

Objective

Employee representatives at DTU are to assist the management in ensuring that DTU remains an attractive professional and social workplace. It is important that cooperation within DTU’s individual units and between the units is maintained and expanded. Key to this work is that DTU is to be trustworthy, innovative and committed.

General

The policy respects the regulations in force at any time in agreements on cooperation and Liaison Committees as well as agreements concerning shop stewards employed by the government.

This policy covers partly cooperation with all employee representatives at DTU – i.e. employee representatives in the Joint Policy Committee (in Danish: HSU), local Liaison Committees (LSU) and Department Liaison Committees (ISU), safety committees (sikkerhedsudvalg) and all shop stewards (tillidsrepræsentanter) – and partly a policy for the position of employee representative.

An open and positive dialogue is to be maintained between the management and employee representatives in all forums – Joint Policy Committee, local Liaison Committees and Department Liaison Committees, and safety committees. The dialogue helps to prevent and resolve conflicts.

Holding positions of trust

The management recognizes the position of trust held by employee representatives and is interested in maintaining active and positive cooperation and sparring, also when addressing important and difficult matters. The position is an expression of a special commitment to DTU on the part of the employee, and it is therefore important that the employee representative may carry out these duties in a way that is satisfactory for all parties. It is important that the management’s and employee representative’s expectations are aligned concerning work efforts and time spent on these duties.

Competence development

As with other employees, employee representatives are to have the opportunity for professional and personal competence development. Academic employees may face special problems in relation to dividing their working hours between teaching, research, public-sector consultancy, innovation and administration.

When employee representative duties expire, the employee representative stepping down and his immediate superior are to discuss whether the employee representative has any special needs for continuing education in relation to future duties.

Pay negotiations 

On equal terms with other employees, employee representatives are entitled to supplements during pay negotiations. The management should monitor cross-departmental or cross-unit initiatives or those involving the whole of DTU and these should be included as an element in evaluating whether supplements should be given.

Entry into force

The policy for cooperation and employee representative duties was approved by the Executive Board and discussed by the Cooperation and Joint Consultation Committee (HSU) in March 2017.

The policy becomes effective from the time it is published on DTU Inside.

Amendments

The policy may be amended at three months' notice following review by the Executive Board and discussed by the Cooperation and Joint Consultation Committee are communicated via DTU Inside.