Code of Conduct

Full Code of Conduct

Overview

This code has been formulated to provide a clear statement of OzGrav’s expectations of its members in respect of their professional and personal conduct. This code of conduct is based on the code of conduct for the ARC Centre of Excellence for All Sky Astrophysics (CAASTRO).

Individuals engaging in behaviour prohibited by this policy, as well as those making allegations of harassment in bad faith, may be subject to disciplinary action which may include verbal warnings, ejection from events without refund of registration fees, having membership of OzGrav cancelled, and being banned from participating in any future Centre meetings or other activities. Decisions about disciplinary action may be made by the OzGrav leadership and/or event organisers.

Anyone who wishes to report a violation of this policy is asked to speak confidentially to a meeting organiser, the OzGrav Chief Operating Officer Yeshe Fenner, the OzGrav Director, Matthew Bailes, or one of our Ombudspeople.

Scope

The Code of Conduct applies to all OzGrav members, including staff, investigators, affiliates and students. The Code of Conduct of an OzGrav member’s University or Organisation overrides this policy and must be deferred to if there is a conflict between the policies.

Policy

OzGrav members must endeavour to:

  • Work together to create outcomes over and above those we could achieve without the benefits of collaboration.
  • Maximize cooperation and communication both within individual nodes and between the nodes.
  • Be collegiate and look to maximise the greater benefit of the centre and to support our fellow members where this can be achieved without jeopardising our own research.

Personal and Professional Behaviour

In performing their duties and functions, all members must:

  • Exercise their best professional and ethical judgement and carry out their duties and functions with integrity and objectivity
  • Act fairly and reasonably, and treat colleagues, students and visitors to the Centre and members of the public with respect, impartiality, courtesy and sensitivity
  • Avoid conflicts of interest
  • Maintain a co‐operative and collaborative approach to working relationships; and
  • Comply with all applicable legislation, industrial instruments, professional codes of conduct or practice and their own organisation’s policies, including in relation to:
    • The conduct of research
    • Confidentiality and privacy of information
    • Equal opportunity
    • Health and safety policies and practices
    • Efficient and effective use of OzGrav resources

 All OzGrav members must not discriminate against anyone in connection with OzGrav activity on the grounds of individual characteristics including, but not limited to: age, gender, gender orientation, sexuality, religion, neurodiversity, indigenous status, non-English speaking background, race, disability, mental and physical health, pregnancy, parenting and other carer responsibilities.

Sexual harassment is unlawful under the Commonwealth Sex Discrimination Act 1984 and it constitutes misconduct.
Should an OzGrav member be accused of sexual harassment during an OzGrav activity, the matter will be investigated and the OzGrav Executive will take the appropriate action necessary.

Conferences and Workshops

OzGrav is committed to making all OzGrav sponsored and supported Conferences and Workshops productive and enjoyable for everyone, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, race, nationality or religion. We will not tolerate discrimination or harassment of participants in any form.

In attending any Conference or Workshop, OzGrav participants are asked to:

  • Behave professionally. Harassment and sexist, racist, or exclusionary comments or jokes are not appropriate. Harassment includes sustained disruption of talks or other events, inappropriate physical contact, sexual attention or innuendo, deliberate intimidation, stalking, and photography or recording of an individual without consent. It also includes offensive comments related to gender, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, race or religion.
  • All communication should be appropriate for a professional audience including people of many different backgrounds. Sexual language and imagery in presentations is not appropriate.
  • Participants asked to stop any inappropriate behaviour are expected to comply immediately. Attendees violating these rules may be asked to leave the event at the sole discretion of the organisers without a refund of any charge.
  • Anyone who wishes to report a violation of this policy is asked to speak confidentially to a meeting organiser, the OzGrav Chief Operating Officer Yeshe Fenner, or to the OzGrav Director, Matthew Bailes.

Conflicts of Interest

All OzGrav members must comply with their organisation’s policy regarding Conflict of Interest.

All OzGrav members must ensure that there is no actual, potential or perceived conflict between their personal interests or their duties to other parties and their duties and responsibilities as members of OzGrav.

All OzGrav members must promptly make full disclosure to OzGrav of all relevant facts and circumstances giving rise to an actual, potential or perceived conflict of interest and cooperate with OzGrav to ensure that all appropriate steps are taken to eliminate or manage such conflicts.

Gifts and Benefits

All OzGrav staff, students and affiliates must not solicit nor accept gifts or benefits, either for themselves or for another person, which may in any way, either directly or indirectly, compromise or influence them in their official OzGrav capacity.

All OzGrav members must report any offers of bribes to their supervisor, who should then ensure that the matter is reported as corrupt behaviour in accordance with your organisation’s code of conduct.

Public Comment

All OzGrav members who make public comment or representations and identify themselves as members of OzGrav must comply with the OzGrav Press release policy.

Use and Security of Official Information

All OzGrav members must:

  • Maintain the integrity, confidentiality and privacy of OzGrav records and information to which they have access to in the course of their employment or study.
  • Take all reasonable precautions to prevent unauthorised access to, or misuse of, OzGrav records and information.
  • Comply with your organisation’s privacy and information policies.

All members must not:

  • Disclose, or offer to supply, confidential or private OzGrav records or information, except when authorised to do so as part of their normal duties and functions, or when required or permitted to do so by their organisation’s policy, State or Commonwealth law, court order or other legal instrument.
  • Access or use information, including information on electronic systems and hardcopy files, other than for an authorised purpose
  • Destroy, or authorise the destruction of, OzGrav records other than in accordance with your organisation’s policy and relevant legislation.

Work Health & Safety

All OzGrav members must comply with their organisation’s Work Health & Safety policies and procedures, and:

  • Take reasonable care for their own health and safety and the health and safety of others who may be affected by their acts or omissions at work.
  • Cooperate with OzGrav and their organization to ensure compliance with all relevant health and safety laws.

Code of conduct at Ozgrav sponsored and supported events

OzGrav is committed to making all OzGrav sponsored and supported Conferences and Workshops productive and enjoyable for everyone, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, race, nationality or religion. We will not tolerate discrimination or harassment of participants in any form.

In attending any Conference or Workshop, participants are asked to:

  • Behave professionally. Harassment and sexist, racist, or exclusionary comments or jokes are not appropriate. Harassment includes sustained disruption of talks or other events, inappropriate physical contact, sexual attention or innuendo, deliberate intimidation, stalking, and photography or recording of an individual without consent. It also includes offensive comments related to gender, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, race or religion.
  • All communication should be appropriate for a professional audience including people of many different backgrounds. Sexual language and imagery in presentations is not appropriate.
  • Participants asked to stop any inappropriate behaviour are expected to comply immediately. Attendees violating these rules may be asked to leave the event at the sole discretion of the organisers without a refund of any charge.

Individuals engaging in behaviour prohibited by this policy, as well as those making allegations of harassment in bad faith, may be subject to disciplinary action which may include verbal warnings, ejection from events without refund of registration fees, having membership of OzGrav cancelled, and being banned from participating in any future Centre meetings or other activities. Decisions about disciplinary action will be made by the event organisers and/or the OzGrav leadership.

Anyone who wishes to report a violation of this policy is asked to speak confidentially to a meeting organiser, the OzGrav Chief Operating Officer Yeshe Fenner, the OzGrav Director, Matthew Bailes, or one of our Ombudspeople.

​If you have any questions please contact Chief Operating Officer Yeshe Fenner coo@ozgrav.org.

SOCIAL MEDIA 
You are welcome to engage with OzGrav and your colleagues through social media, provided that your communications are respectful, appropriate for a professional audience, and adhere to the Code of Conduct. If you have questions or criticisms about a colleague’s research or presentation, we strongly encourage you to communicate that directly to your colleague rather than via social media. We also encourage you to only post things on social media about other people, which you would be comfortable saying to them in person.

Twitter @ARC_OzGrav
Facebook www.facebook.com/ozgrav.org
YouTube OzGrav https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCg9JNT2mc7rAtCNOqXAAsUQ

Node Policies

Below are some of our node’s policies around code of conduct, harassment and dispute resolution, which members may find useful:

1. Adelaide
* bullying and harassment handbook webpage:
https://www.adelaide.edu.au/hr/hsw/hsw-policy-handbook/bullying-harassment-handbook-chapter
* student grievance resolution process:
https://www.adelaide.edu.au/student/grievance/
* policy on bullying and harassment
https://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/3723/?dsn=policy.document;field=data;id=6642;m=view

2. ANU
https://policies.anu.edu.au/ppl/document/ANUP_000623
* staff grievance policy:
https://policies.anu.edu.au/ppl/document/ANUP_000466
* student complaint policy:
https://policies.anu.edu.au/ppl/document/ANUP_000468

3. Melbourne
* safer community program:
https://safercommunity.unimelb.edu.au/discrimination-sexual-harassment-and-bullying
* student conduct policy:
https://policy.unimelb.edu.au/MPF1324
* appropriate workplace behavior policy:
https://policy.unimelb.edu.au/MPF1328

4. Monash
* equal opportunity policy:
https://www.monash.edu/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/1294680/Equal-Opportunity.pdf
* staff-student relationship policy:
https://www.monash.edu/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/797432/Staff-Student-Personal-Relationships.pdf
* behaviors in the workplace policy (including sexual harassment and bullying):
https://www.monash.edu/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/1265250/Behaviours-in-the-Workplace.pdf
* resolution procedure:
https://www.monash.edu/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/797430/Resolution-of-Unacceptable-Behaviour-and-Discrimination.pdf

5. Swinburne
* bullying, sexual harassment, and discrimination definitions/policy:
http://www.swinburne.edu.au/about/leadership-governance/policies-regulations/policies/people-culture-integrity/unacceptable-behaviour/
* generic complaint process:
http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/feedback/

6. UWA
* harassment and bullying policy:
http://www.hr.uwa.edu.au/policies/policies/conduct/harassment
* sexual harassment policy:
http://www.hr.uwa.edu.au/policies/policies/conduct/sexual-harassment
General: Australian Human Rights Commission:
* sexual harassment in the workplace (not STEM-specific)
https://knowtheline.humanrights.gov.au/

Ombudspeople

OzGrav has several Ombudspeople who are available to provide confidential, informal, independent, and neutral dispute resolution advisory services for members of the OzGrav Centre of Excellence. The Ombudspeople are available to assist members in identifying and evaluating options for resolving and managing conflicts, provides various types of informal mediation services, and makes referrals to other appropriate academic and community resources. It is intended that Ombudspeople may help with conflicts that arise in OzGrav activities or events, not in problems internal to an academic institution, which usually can be mediated by the appropriate offices in the host institution. The contact details for the OzGrav ombudspeople are available for our members on our wiki.

Due to its informal, confidential, and independent role outside the administrative structure of the OzGrav participating universities, notice to the Ombudspeople about a problem does not result in the generation of formal records, nor does it constitute legal notice to the member host institution about the existence of a problem. For those interested in making official complaints to the university about a problem, the Ombudspeople can assist by making appropriate referrals.

The Ombudspeople will report on the types of cases they have handled, as well as relevant issues and concerns, to the OzGrav Equity & Diversity Committee and/or Executive Committee, however they do not share any confidential information.

Contact the Chief Operating Officer Yeshe Fenner if you have trouble accessing the wiki and/or if you have questions about OzGrav’s ombuds program.

NB: We acknowledge that the role of the OzGrav Ombudspeople outlined below draws on elements of the LIGO Scientific Collaboration Ombuds program, including the role and function definitions below, which are adapted from the International Ombuds Association.  

Role and Function of the Ombudsperson

The primary duties of an organizational ombudsperson are (1) to work with individuals and groups in an organization to explore and assist them in determining options to help resolve conflicts, problematic issues or concerns, and (2) to bring systemic concerns to the attention of the organization for resolution.

An organizational ombudsperson operates in a manner to preserve the confidentiality of those seeking services, maintains a neutral/impartial position with respect to the concerns raised, works at an informal level of the organizational system, and is independent of formal organizational structures. Successfully fulfilling that primary function requires a number of activities on the part of the ombudsperson while precluding others.

Activities and functions most frequently undertaken by an ombudsperson include, but are not limited to:

  • Listens and understands issues while remaining neutral with respect to the facts. The ombudsperson doesn’t listen to judge or to decide who is right or wrong. The ombudsperson listens to understand the issue from the perspective of the individual. This is a critical step in developing options for resolution.
  • Assists in reframing issues and developing and helping individuals evaluate options. This helps individuals identify the interests of various parties to the issues and helps focus efforts on potential options to meet those interests.
  • Guides or coaches individuals to deal directly with other parties, including the use of formal resolution resources of the organization. An ombudsperson often seeks to help individuals improve their skill and their confidence in giving voice to their concerns directly.
  • Refers individuals to appropriate resolution resources. An ombudsperson may refer individuals to one or more formal organizational resources that can potentially resolve the issue.
  • Assists in surfacing issues to formal resolution channels. When an individual is unable or unwilling to surface a concern directly, the ombudsperson can assist by helping give voice to the concern and/or creating an awareness of the issue among appropriate decision-makers in the organization.
  • Facilitates informal resolution processes. An ombudsperson may help to resolve issues between parties through various types of informal mediation.
  • Identifies new issues and opportunities for systemic change for the organization. The unique positioning of the ombudsperson serves to provide information that can produce insight to issues and resolutions. The ombudsperson is a source of detection and early warning of new issues and a source of suggestions of systemic change to improve existing processes.

What an ombudsperson does not do:
Because of the informal, neutral, confidential and independent positioning of an ombudsperson in an organization, they typically do not undertake the following roles or activities:

  • Participate in formal investigations or play a role in a formal issue resolution process
  • Serve in any other organizational role that would compromise the neutrality of the ombudsperson role
  • Receive notice for the organization
  • Make binding decisions or mandate policies
  • Create or maintain formal records for the organization

Reports

In the interests of transparency, we provide a summary of the reports of issues or misconduct that the OzGrav ombudspeople and senior leaders have received since 2019. These are reported as falling within a range (1-5, 6-10 etc), rather than specific numbers.

Over the past four years (CY2019-CY2022), there have been 6-10 instances of “Advice sought” or “Misconduct Level 1” reported to the OzGrav ombudspeople and/or senior leaders (see definitions below). Of these, most were resolved within 2 weeks by providing advice or guidance to the complainant and/or by approaching the alleged offender to explain the nature of the misconduct and why it should not be repeated in the future, which was done with the complainant’s permission and without disclosing the complainant’s identity.

There were 1-5 cases of “Misconduct Level 2” that were reported to the relevant university HR department. Those universities were legally prohibited from disclosing the outcome of the complaints process to OzGrav.

Definitions

Misconduct can include:

  • Offensive comments related to gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, mental illness, neurodiversity, physical appearance, body size, age, race, or religion.
  • Unwelcome comments regarding a person’s lifestyle choices and practices, including those related to food, health, parenting, drugs, and employment.
  • Deliberate misgendering or use of ‘dead’ or rejected names.
  • Gratuitous or off-topic sexual images or behaviour in spaces where they’re not appropriate.
  • Physical contact and simulated physical contact (e.g., textual descriptions like “*hug*” or “*backrub*”) without consent or after a request to stop.
  • Threats of violence.
  • Incitement of violence towards any individual, including encouraging a person to suicide or to engage in self-harm.
  • Deliberate intimidation.
  • Stalking or following.
  • Harassing photography or recording, including logging online activity for harassment purposes.
  • Sustained disruption of discussion.
  • Unwelcome sexual attention.
  • Patterns of inappropriate social contact, such as requesting/assuming inappropriate levels of intimacy with others.
  • Continued one-on-one communication after requests to cease such activity.
  • Deliberate “outing” of any aspect of a person’s identity without their consent, except as necessary to protect vulnerable people from intentional abuse.
  • Publication of non-harassing private communication.

Misconduct Level 1: The incident was a one-off and/or the alleged offender did not seem to be acting maliciously or aware of the potential for their behaviour to cause harm.
This level may be addressed initially by approaching the alleged offender to explain the nature of the misconduct and why it should not be repeated in the future. This must be done with the complainant’s permission and without disclosing the complainant’s identity, unless they give permission to be identified.
Misconduct Level 2: The incident was deliberate and/or a repeated pattern of behaviour and/or of a level of seriousness that requires escalation to the alleged offender’s institution. The alleged offender may also have their OzGrav membership revoked.
Misconduct Level 3: The incident is potentially a criminal matter and requires escalation to the alleged offender’s institution and police.
Advice sought: e.g. where an ombuds is approached seeking advice about how to handle a situation (e.g. about unreasonable expectations about workload or hours, difficulty with mentoring/supervisory relationship) but is not making a complaint about misconduct.