Hatred, threats, violence and crises - support for managers

IN THE EVENT OF AN EMERGENCY OR IMMINENT DANGER – DIAL 112

The University's security and service number
+46 90-786 76 00

The University's crisis number
+46 90-786 97 00

Police 114 14

Medical advice 1177

If something has happened

Firstly, look after the employee or student who needs support.

• Form an idea of the situation and log who has been subjected, and to what. Also note down times and what contacts you have made.
• If there is a local crisis management team, activate it.
• Inform your head of department, head of office or dean about what has happened.
• Always inform the security function. They can also advice and guide you if the event needs reporting to the police.
• Contact the supportive functions that you need to handle the situation.
  • The Central Crisis Management Team: +46 90-786 97 00
  • Feelgood Occupational Health Care Services: +46 90-17 63 80
  • The Human Resources Office: Jeanette Lövqvist, Linda Johnson or Pernilla Jansson.
  • The Student Health Service: Contact details
  • Communications Office: contact Communications Director Gunilla Stendahl
  • University Chaplaincy: Chaplain on duty +46 90-200 25 00
  • Entry to university premises: if you need to block access and it is not an emergency: passagen@umu.se

• Are others affected than the victim? This could be a group of students, work team or similar. If so, it is important to ask all involved individuals what support they need, and inform them of what has happened, with the details you are able to share.

Follow up afterwards

When the situation has calmed down, it is important to follow up on what has happened.

• Follow up with the individual/s that were involved and, if needed, ensure that these individuals continue to get the support they need.
• If a work team has been affected, follow up the situation with this group too.
• Go through current procedures and make the alterations necessary. This is also a good opportunity to remind your team about the procedures at an upcoming workplace meeting or similar.
• Go through the log you kept, and, if necessary, add to the notes to cover the entire course of events.

Preventive measures

A good way of handling a situation involving hatred, threats, violence or crisis is to be prepared:

• Regularly talk about security and work environment on your workplace meetings.
  Systematic work environment work and action plans
• Set up procedures to handle various situations.
  Checklist for threats and violence (Prevent)
  Checklist in the event of a bomb threat (.doc)
• Make the procedures and routines well-known at your workplace.
• Encourage your staff to inform you if they feel unsafe or are exposed to threats or violence.
• Make sure you have a local crisis management team in place at your workplace in case it needs to be activated.
  Crisis management at Umeå University (general information)
  A guide to crisis management (departmental level)
• Complete a risk assessment before starting something new, such as a new research project. Follow up with an action plan.
  The Swedish Work Environment Authority also has some useful information.