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UCD President Professor Andrew Deeks apologized to Assistant Professor Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin and said the university is implementing a series of new and revised measures to address harassment in the workplace.
Her statement comes a day after Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin spoke publicly about her experience of harassment by a former university colleague in an interview with the Irish Times and also posted about it on Twitter.
In a statement, Professor Deeks said: “I am greatly saddened that one of our colleagues has experienced such traumatic events over an extended period, and I apologize to Aoibhinn on behalf of UCD. I also apologize to other colleagues and students who have suffered such experiences while in our care. “
Professor Deeks said the university will adopt a university-wide zero tolerance approach, encompassing both students and staff, and will encourage those who experience such behavior to come forward so they can receive support and take action.
“Bullying, harassment, sexual harassment or sexual misconduct have no place at UCD, and we are already working to strengthen our current policies with a number of measures. We are proposing a fundamental procedural change in the way they are handled. these matters, which is to establish the option for the university to initiate an investigation in the absence of a formal complaint (currently the university can only investigate when there is a formal complaint), ”said Professor Deeks.
“Other measures include a new concept of disclosure regarding sexual harassment and sexual misconduct and clarifying the relationship between formal and informal internal complaints and complaints to the Garda Síochána,” he said.
Dr. Ní Shúilleabháin has since said that she is surprised by Professor Deeks’ statement.
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