HI Tiffany,

 

This sounds like UCLA all over again. If I read your email correctly.

 

Here are some things for you to consider. I do not know your exact situation soÑthese ideas are for you to decide if they will work or not. I am just brainstorming here

1.       Do the faculty belong to a Union? If yes,

a.       read the contract to see if you can get any help there

b.       Who is the Union president and is that person approachable

c.       Is there any writing in the contract that if other faculty do not "feel safe working around this individual they may file a grievance"

 

2.       In most universities the faculty may only be held accountable by the Dean of the CollegeÑif that is the case for your institution speak to the Dean. The Dean is responsible for his/her college (at least that is the way it works at Ferris State University)

a.       If you do not know the DeanÑbefore you speak to him/her get some input from people who do know the dean so you will have a better understanding of how best to approach so you get the results you want.

 

3.       Who is in charge of research? A Dean? Again this may be a person to approach to at least obtain a copy of the research agreements. There could be something in writing concerning the workplace safety requirements.

 

4.       Determine what OSHA/NFPA/EPA regulations impact the laboratoryÑyou may be able to get additional support from Risk Management group associated with your institution.

 

5.       Get a hold of the organizational chart for the institution and understand how you may use that to obtain assistance from other is more powerful positions to change the "culture" of this individual.

 

6.       If need to see how the Provost fits into the line of authorityÑis it from the Provost to the Dean to the FacultyÑthen that may be another area you can approach.

7.       You never indicated if you were within the Academic Affairs DivisionÑif you this may be a help as you may not be seen as an outsider tell a faculty member what to do.

 

8.       Do you have a speaking relationship with this faculty member? If you do not you may want to start one to build trust so when you discuss with him/her the changes that are needed and why he/she may be more willing to make them.

 

9.       That brings up another issueÑat the institution you work at how is the trust level? Do people believe in what their leaders say?

 

 

10.   One more thing to make it a lasting change-- the individual must understand "what is in it for them" That is hard to do when they may be receiving great praise from administration because they are a "cash cow"

 

 

Again the above are just ideas for you to considerÑ

 

Best Regards,

Anne

 

 

 

Good afternoon all!

 

I know as safety professionals we've all faced some very interesting situations, but I was curious as to everyone's thoughts on a situation similar to the one below. 

 

How did you approach the situation?  What did you try that worked?  What did you try that maybe didn't work as well as you had hoped? Maybe the problem wasn't completely solved but it improved? Did you have to reach out for assistance?  I know we all have different environments and experiences and it's these differences that make our shared experiences invaluable.

 

Situation:

 

A renowned researcher is bringing in large sums of funding and greatly adding to the prestige of a facility/institution.  This individual, however, has repeatedly demonstrated a disregard for safety. Others in the group are aware of this but are reluctant to comment.  They wonder how/why this individual can continue operating in this manner.

 

Thanks so much for your thoughts! 

 

Regards,

Tiffany

 

Sent from Mail for Windows 10

 

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