Who can address the Ombudsperson from WEGO
- Early Stage Researchers (ESRs) of the WEGO-ITN
- Members of Beneficiary Institutions working directly with the supervision of the ESRs
- Members of Partner Institutions of the WEGO-ITN working directly with the ESRs
- All those undertaking specific administration and communication tasks for the WEGO-ITN
The Network members can address the Ombudsperson in relation to:
a. Enquiries:
A first task has to do with responding to doubts and questions from any member of the WEGO community in relation to situations that happen within the network and the person presenting the enquiry feels that she or he needs clarification on how to proceed (e.g. a conflict situation, a situation where a right might be affected, possible discrimination or treatment not in line with the Network’s Ethics). In these cases, the person is not yet sure that the action to be presented constitutes a situation for which a complaint must be presented. The main focus of enquiries is to get orientation.
b. Complaints:
In these cases, the situations are similar to those related to enquiries (e.g. a conflict situation, a situation where a right might be affected, possible discrimination or treatment not in line with the Network’s Ethics) but the person is sure that the facts to present affect their rights and/or are not in line with the ethics of the network. The person has already tried other ways to find a solution (e.g. direct dialogue with the person(s) with whom the conflict might have arisen, consultation with others within the network or at the institutional level –beneficiary or partner) but the situation persists. The main focus here is for the Ombudsperson to have a form of intervention aimed at redressing the situation.
c. Requests for mediation:
Mediation can be requested when a conflict situation (or a potential conflict situation) is the matter of concern, and one of the parts would like to call for a facilitated dialogue so as to find a solution with the active participation of those involved. The Ombudsperson is called upon to facilitate this process.
For these three types of situations, the Ombudsperson can be contacted through:
- By filling in the online form
- By requesting a call (for example through WhatsApp or Skype) (Email: agostinoana@gmail.com)
Once the Ombudsperson is contacted:
- An acknowledgment of receipt will be sent, within 3 days.
- A formal answer to the request indicating possible ways to proceed, within 2 weeks.
- Following these two steps, and in direct communication with the person presenting the request, plans will be made to implement the necessary actions, aiming at finalising the process within a maximum of 3 months.
Reporting
- The Ombudsperson will keep records of all the requests received, following all the privacy policies guiding the WEGO Network.
- A report will be presented at the end of each year (2020, 2021) with statistics of the requests received: number of requests, type (enquiry, complaint, and mediation request), membership of those presenting the requests (ESR, Beneficiaries, and Partners), gender, location, etc.
- Report periodically to the Network coordinating team and the EAB on the process, assessments, suggestions, etc.