Label Alliance: “It reinforces our policy orientation towards greater equality and diversity.”
The UM has even been awarded dual certification, recognized byAfnor for its policy promoting professional equality and diversity. This recognition was obtained following a process that required "enormous effort" on the part of the departments, services, and units involved, as highlighted by Julie Boiché, Vice President for Social Responsibility and the institution's racism and anti-Semitism representative, and Agnès Fichard-Carroll, Vice President of Training, Gender Equality Officer, and Disability Advisor.
First of all, what exactly does the Alliance label certify?
Agnès Fichard-Carroll: Alliance is a gender equality and diversity label. This dual label recognizes the work that has been done and allows us to commit to continuous improvement. It also proves that UM upholds these values for students who want to enroll at the University of Montpellier, or for staff who want to come and work there.
Is UM the first university to have embarked on this process and obtained certification?
Julie Boiché: Yes, absolutely. Other public authorities, such as county councils and municipalities, have also embarked on this process, but we are currently the only university.
Where did this desire to apply for the Alliance label come from?
AFC: We renewed our HRS4R label in 2021. The IGESR (General Inspectorate of Education, Sport, and Research) published a comparative analysis of the HRS4R label and national labels, identifying areas of overlap. So we decided to go for it. This also coincided with the University's very good positioning in rankings relating to social responsibility issues (such as THE Impact). So there was a certain consistency, but I must admit that we may not have fully appreciated the enormous amount of work that this certification would require.
So, what are the steps involved in obtaining this certification?
AFC: First, you need to contact Afnor, which oversees the process. Discussions are held to establish the scope and schedule. Next, you need to put together a file, and based on this file, an initial audit is conducted on site. The inspector—or in our case, the inspector—then submits a report.
It does seem like a lengthy process...
AFC: Yes, especially sincethere was a mistake, if I may say so, regarding the scope.
J.B:We began by discussing the scope with Afnor, together with the steering committee and the president's office. This was an initial request, so we wanted to start with the certification of central and shared services before considering, in a second request, an extension to components.
However, the current certification also applies to university departments, schools, and institutes.
J.B: That's true. Just as we were about to complete the process, with the application completed and the audit carried out, At the end of 2023, a bombshell dropped! Afnor announced that the scope of the certification must include at least 25% of the staff, but the central and shared services were not enough to reach this threshold, so it didn't go through!
Did you have to start the whole process over again?
J.B: More or less. We had to do the same thing again, but with a wider scope. So we expanded it to include the departments, schools, and institutes that are in contact with students. With this new, broader scope, we were well above the AFNOR criteria this time around.
What was the University of Montpellier evaluated on?
J.B: We demonstrated how committed we are to equality and diversity in recruitment, career management, communication, and the actions we take to raise awareness and combat discrimination. We also demonstrated our ability to respond to problems.
AFC: Notably with the establishment of support units to combat gender-based and sexual violence and all forms of discrimination. But also everything we do to promote greater gender diversity in the various fields of study. We have collected a huge amount of data and also produced new data thanks to the focus groups we have organized on specific topics.
I imagine that the plan for gender equality, the disability master plan, etc. were valuable assets...
AFC: Of course, we already had a thorough analysis and defined action plans. We can also mention the quality of life at work plan, the week against racism and anti-Semitism, and the week against LGBT+phobia. Ultimately, this dossier was put together by cross-referencing things that are part of our recurring activities with other elements that required further investigation, either because the Afnor specifications did not correspond to our structure or because we need to think about them for the future.
Did this initiative ultimately lead to proposals or action?
J.B: I would say that it reinforced our policy orientation in favor of equality and diversity. In this area, for example, there are 26 criteria for discrimination defined by law. The steps we took allowed us to "take the temperature" and reaffirm that sexism, racism, disability, religious discrimination, and negative treatment based on sexual orientation or gender identity were indeed the community's main concerns; these are issues that we tackle head-on. The reporting form we have drawn up nevertheless lists the 26 criteria, and staff and users should know that they can come and see us about any type of discrimination.
What are the main issues raised in the reports you receive?
J.B: Reports often concern workplace violence or difficult relationships at work that are described as harassment by the people who contact us. We also sometimes receive reports of negative treatment or discrimination based on origin, gender identity, or sexual orientation.
AFC: We are aware that we need to be vigilant, as some people may not yet feel comfortable reporting other forms of discrimination to us. There has been a lot of talk about fatphobia, for example, with the auditor; however, we have not had any reported cases, which does not mean that it does not exist.
How long did the application process take in total?
AFC: A little over three years for a label that must be renewed every four years, with an interim review in two years. Fortunately, thanks to the steering, human resources, campus life, and other departments, work is ongoing. We didn't have to revolutionize our approach, but these certification processes are also an opportunity to remind ourselves of what we do, to engage in dialogue with students and staff, and to learn a little more about what is happening at the University. Ultimately, this is a wonderful institutional project, and Julie and I would like to thank everyone at headquarters, in the departments, schools, and institutes, and beyond, who contributed to this success.