Three hospital employees in Oslo sacked after harassment alerts

Oslo University Hospital (OUS) chemotherapyOslo University Hospital (OUS).Photo: Fredrik Hagen / NTB scanpix

Three employees at Oslo University Hospital lost their jobs last year due to warnings about harassment. In total, there were nine alerts at the hospital in 2018.

The hospital’s ombudsmen concluded that there were censurable conditions inherent in the three warnings wrote Aftenposten newspaper. One of the dismissals was in a management position.

Six of the nine notifications last year were delivered directly to the Alert Ombudsman. The hospital made it easier to notify about harassment after the ‘#MeToo’ campaign. The management assumes that this is the reason for last year’s increase. In 2017 there were no alerts.

While HR Director, Susanne Flølo, believes the hospital’s alert department is prepared to handle the cases, the Medical Association is not impressed. Chief lawyer, Frode Solberg of the Norwegian Medical Association, has assisted with a woman’s alerts, stopped at the hospital because after eight months she experienced the procedure as bothersome.

‘’It has been a great strain for the doctor who notified, and certainly for him who was notified about. It is important in such cases that the employer ensures progression in the case processing’’ said Solberg.

Legal adviser, Randi Borgen, at the hospital, replied that the cases take a long time to process because it is important to do a thorough job.

© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today