One of the rules of conduct set out in the peer evaluation carried out at ETH in 2002 was to ensure that students and staff feel comfortable in the work environment, says ETH President Olaf Kübler. "ETH is a internationally aligned and internationally composed. It's the workplace of people, from Switzerland and many other countries, with often very different backgrounds who work together on highly complex matters.“ The creation of the kind of work atmosphere needed to do one's best work was a highly exacting continuing process. The main ingredient for success was mutual esteem and respect. This is why, said Kübler, he was pleased to be a patron of the "Respect" campaign.

Discrimination: not tolerated

Where people work together, frictions and critical incidents occur. A hasty word, something that offends someone else, it is easy to overlook that someone is discriminated. Perhaps it is more difficult to accept that the all-to-human other side of the workplace also exists at a renowned university. "An unprejudiced, fair way of dealing with eachother, among researchers, students, teaching and administrative staff is fundamental" thinks Kübler. "I would like to make it absolutely clear: ETH tolerates no discrimination."

People's potential can only unfold if they feel understood and respected at their place of work, says Eugen Teuwsen, psychologist and an ombudsman at ETH Zurich, agreeing with Olaf Kübler. "Humans are remarkably sensitive beings. They need a lot of understanding, approval and acknowledgement." But if conditions were right, their capacity to do good work was frankly "inconceivable".

Dependencies

The work environment at ETH is very different from that of the private sector, says André Schmid, head of the personnel advisory team at ETH Zurich. This is partly because if someone followed a course of studies at ETH, they did this with the goal of obtaining a diploma or a PhD. For the latter, said Schmid, the relationship with the professor was of paramount importance. A further salient point: around half of the 8,000 people who work at ETH work on time-limited contracts.

Another factor was that a third of all people working in research came from abroad–i.e. their qualifications are relevant for their residence authorisations. In addition, ETH practically had what comes down to a monopoly in certain disciplines or areas of studies and research. "All this means that this leads to dependencies for many people at ETH. If in such situations the superior acts with a lack of respect, it is especially problematic if the person affected is also dependent," says Schmid.

A litmus test for leadership

"The person who leads sets the standards. The behaviour evidenced by the leaders in any hierarchy cascades down to the next level. This is why people in positions of responsibility should take special care to behave with courtesy and respect to those who work for and with them," says Brigitte von Känel, president of the personnel commission (PeKo).

No form of discrimination is tolerated at ETH. A campaign to raise awareness of this fact was launched at the beginning of the semester. (Picture: Daniel Lienhard, Zurich) large

She sees a litmus test for leadership behaviour in assessment talks. "Leaders should be capable of recognising whether a member of their team is reaching his or her potential and of fostering each individual's strengths.“ There is more to this than just fine words: the Personnel Regulations in force at ETH obliges employees to "continue to educate themselves in accordance with their capabilities and the demands of the employment market and to be mentally prepared for changes." This means that superiors too have a duty. "Unfortunately, cases still exist where the superior does not allow, let alone actively supports, the further development of their staff," says the PeKo president.

Caretaker: the star role for once

But as in other places, there is sometimes also a lack of respect within peer groups, emphasises personnel advisor André Schmid. Brigitte von Känel adds, "It is just as harmful when staff speak of their superior in a derogatory manner“. Von Känel's evaluation of the "Respect-Factor" at ETH is mixed. On the one hand, demands from the members of staff were taken more seriously today than ten years ago. But on the other, she still senses a lot of status-bred arrogance. It is therefore no coincidence that PeKo uses its Jubilee project, "ETHeater“, as a vehicle to promote mutual respect. It is the caretaker who is the star of the piece–and the professor must be content with a supporting role.

Problem of a male environment

Another type of discriminatory risk results from the fact that men make up a large majority of people who work at ETH. "This influences the way in which men and women relate," says Carla Zingg, who, together with Brigitte Manz heads the ETH Office for Equal Opportunities. As a minority, women often had to deal with typical minority problems: behavioural forms and suchlike, which are tolerated by the male majority but which women often find upsetting or annoying. "And in a male environment," she goes on to say, "women are often noticed, first and foremost, because they are women, not because they are experts, and they must then prove they know what they're talking about."

It is not possible to say categorically where discrimination begins, according to Carla Zingg. "What is decisive is whether a person feels discriminated. This means we are not talking about firmly fixed standards, but about subjective perception as the deciding factor–and this calls for respect." The campaign at ETH aims to raise awareness that attention should already be paid to mechanisms that lead to prejudice. Politeness and good manners, she thinks, have gone out of fashion in society at large. But for a working relationship, one that is satisfying and that functions, these values are still relevant and very valuable.

As valuable as the Nobel Prize

To be quite clear, action in cases of disparagement is not merely an option–it is enforceable liability(1). This is why some institutions, such as EAWAG, have gone so far as to issue special regulations. At ETH one doesn't want to go as far as this. In addition to the awareness campaign, the Office for the Development of Personnel and Organisation at ETH is counting on modularly structured leadership courses to sharpen perception. Ombudsman Eugen Teuwsen: "A work environment that promotes an atmosphere of belonging, understanding and motivation greatly benefits everyone concerned, and is probably as valuable as a Nobel Prize."