A responsible workplace

A responsible workplace

Improving employees' quality of life is one of the cornerstones of the UOC's commitment to being a responsible workplace

The University has been working for several years now to make it easier for employees to dovetail their work and family lives and reduce the number of unnecessary commutes.

Thanks to the UOC's unique set-up, working remotely from somewhere other than the office is more than just a possibility. In fact, many of our employees take advantage of this opportunity to reduce their weekly commutes (and therefore the stress that commuting to work can bring on) and to find a better balance among the different facets of their lives.

As part of its commitment to the 2030 Agenda, the UOC contributes to the health and well-being of its employees, environmental protection and better working conditions.

At the UOC we are working to comprehensively incorporate the gender perspective across all faculties and departments. This is where the Equality Unit comes in, as it leads and coordinates strategic actions, regulatory measures and awareness-raising campaigns. You can learn all about the Equality Unit here.

In the area of work-related health we offer:

  • A medical service for employees, which includes physical therapy consultations at the main UOC centres.
  • An online psychological care service to minimize psychosocial risks among our team.
  • The celebration of Health Week, a full week devoted to the promotion of health and well-being among the entire university community. Health Week has taken place four times now, offering workshops, training sessions, chats and advice to UOC employees about diet and nutrition, physical exercise and emotion management.

A huge milestone has been hit thanks to cooperation within the Catalan university system: the acquisition of 100% renewable energy to cover the universities' energy needs for the next two years.

At the UOC we also have improvement plans in place to make more efficient use of energy in our buildings.

Fully aware of the urgent need to reduce our reliance on single-use plastics, the UOC has replaced the plastic cups it used to supply to the drinking fountains located throughout its buildings with biodegradable ones. It has also started an awareness-raising campaign to teach people about the need to use resources responsibly and reduce waste.

Raising awareness and acceptance of the 2030 Agenda, the targets set out for each SDG and the part that we can play in reaching them is one of the main actions we are carrying out at the UOC.

We have launched a number of communication campaigns on social media, aimed at the UOC community and the general population, to disseminate information and raise awareness of the global sustainable development agenda.

Some examples of this include the Right to Food Week, our participation in the European Sustainable Development Week 2018 and the #GenderUOC campaign held on International Women's Day.