Promoting equality and diversity

To guarantee the quality of its actions, the Université Le Havre Normandie has set up an Equality Mission whose role is to :

• promote equal treatment for women and men and combat all forms of gender-based discrimination (LGBTQIA+).
• raise students’ awareness of equality and diversity issues, to guide them in their studies and future careers.
• prevent and combat sexist and sexual violence on campus.

In January 2024, the university set up an Equality Working Group, supported by the university’s Equality Officer and designed to provide a cross-disciplinary forum for discussion. It brings together administrative staff, lecturers and professors, all from different parts and departments of the university. A facilitator of collective reflection, this group enables us to take stock of actions already underway, and to propose new ones for greater involvement throughout the establishment.

As a result of the preparatory work carried out by the Equality Mission, the company now has a professional equality plan. Presented to and approved by the company’s Board of Directors, this document sets out a series of measures designed to :

• strengthen the institutional governance of the Equality policy over the long term,
• promote gender diversity and equal access to all functions and responsibilities, including management and senior management,
• assess, prevent and address pay and career development gaps between women and men,
• promote a balance between professional, personal and family life,
• prevent and deal with discrimination, acts of violence, moral or sexual harassment and gender-based harassment,
• taking action for women’s health in the workplace,
• communicating, raising awareness and training to establish a culture of professional equality between women and men.

The university has a number of measures in place to promote professional equality, including the :

• more reliable recruitment, promotion and advancement processes, with gender-specific data and publication of the equality index,
• training and awareness-raising for staff involved in the recruitment process,
• introduction of a support protocol for employees returning to work after maternity, adoption or parental leave, and consideration of women’s health in the workplace,
• strengthening the implementation of the life-style charter and the introduction of special leave of absence for employees suffering from endometriosis,
• exchanging best practices with the company’s partners (EUNICoast, Campus polytechnique des territoires maritimes et portuaires),
• integrating the fight against gender-based and sexual violence into the company’s training plan and DUERP.

Students are also at the heart of the school’s initiatives in favor of gender equality, with actions such as:
– communication campaigns on the issues of sexist and sexual violence or consent, and increased support for student events linked to these themes (Women’s Rights Festival, for example);
– student involvement in the fight against gender stereotypes, with awareness-raising programs starting in junior high school;
– the introduction of awareness-raising MOOCs: “Liberté, Égalité, Sororité”, aimed at all students, and the introduction of Open Badges;
– awareness-raising events in the university’s various structures, aimed at staff and students.

As early as September 2017, a Cellule d’Écoute et de Soutien des Agents et des Étudiants en Mal-être, the CESAM, was set up at Le Havre Normandie University. A mediation tool in situations of suffering at work or in studies, it can also be called upon, whether by a victim, a witness, the preventive medicine service or a staff representative, in the event of a situation of presumed sexist or sexual violence. It may conduct an internal investigation before referring the matter to the public prosecutor.

Since its creation, CESAM has been redesigned to provide more effective support. Now structured into two separate units, it provides support for situations of suffering in the workplace or at school, and those involving gender-based and sexual violence (SGBV).

A tool for reporting sexual and gender-based violence, it is referenced on the website of the Ministry of Higher Education:

Go to website

If you are a victim or witness of gender-based or sexual violence, a questionnaire is available to help you report it to CÉSAM:

Online reporting form

The 2026-2029 Plan is a continuation of the equality policies implemented at ULHN over the last few years. It aims to :

• prevent inequality and discrimination in all administrative, educational and scientific processes;
• supporting career paths and developing the talents of all ;
• promote an inclusive and sustainable institutional culture, integrating gender and diversity issues into teaching and research teams.

Thanks to this plan, the University is transforming symbolic commitments into concrete, measurable actions, with precise monitoring indicators to guarantee the effectiveness of the measures.

Among the 64 actions, several priorities stand out:

• recruitment and career advancement: reinforcing fairness in recruitment and career procedures, promoting gender diversity in positions of responsibility;
• Awareness-raising and training: offer regular training courses on stereotypes, prevention of gender-based violence and inclusive communication;
• monitoring and evaluation: set up indicators to measure the impact of actions and adjust practices over time;
• promoting local initiatives: supporting student and staff projects that contribute to equality.

The Multi-Year Plan is not just an administrative tool: it is part of a collective dynamic, involving teachers-researchers, administrative staff and students. During the week of March 8, these initiatives were promoted through events, workshops and communications on the University’s website and social networks.

All 64 actions are available on the Université Le Havre Normandie website. This document enables every member of the university community to understand the measures put in place, the objectives pursued and the ways in which everyone can contribute to advancing equality within ULHN.

-> Download the action plan

Three indicators make up the professional equality index:

• The overall pay gap between women and men, for civil servants in equivalent grades and levels
• Overall pay gap between women and men, for contract employees, by equivalent hierarchical category
• The number of public-sector employees of the under-represented sex among the ten highest-paid public-sector employees.

Reference texts :

• Decree no. 2023-1136 of December 5, 2023 on the measurement and reduction of pay gaps between women and men in the French civil service.
• Decree no. 2023-1137 of December 5, 2023 relating to the methods for calculating the indicators defined in Article 1 of Decree no. 2023-1136 of December 5, 2023 relating to the measurement and reduction of pay gaps between women and men in the State civil service.

Indicator no. 1 – Salary gap for civil servants in the same category-grade-step :

Indicator n°2 – Pay gap for contract staff :

Indicator n°3 – Ten highest salaries in the company :

Final calculation of the equality index