Unethical behaviour causes Ethics Professor to resign

Unethical behaviour causes Ethics Professor to resign

A professor from Utrecht University had to leave this fall after complaints about harassment and an unsafe working atmosphere. A complaint about sexual harassment also plays a role.

The man was head of the Ethics Institute, writes the Utrecht University news website DUB. The university asked him to resign because he concealed a relationship with a student, who later became his employee.

According to the woman, it was not a relationship at all, because there was no equivalence and mutual consent. She filed a complaint for sexual harassment. It was declared unfounded, because it was his word against hers. But there were also complaints from another employee, who knew about the relationship and was not allowed to bring anything out about it. There was allegedly an unsafe atmosphere in the institute.

Too intimate

The professor regrets that he has kept the relationship secret: “I understand very well that it is not up to me to determine whether such a relationship is a problem or not. I have thought about mentioning it, but I found it too intimate”. However, he rejects the complaints. There was no unsafe atmosphere at all, he thinks.

The complainants are disappointed too. They have difficulty with the representation of the complaints by the university. It was also not easy to get an adequate hearing for their complaints. “I hoped that me speaking up would lead to a safer work and study climate for women,” says the former student. “I now know that that was a vain hope. (HOP, Bas Belleman)