Guideline: Missing or Deceased Staff Member

Purpose

This guideline provides a consistent approach to guide decision makers and the University community in the event of a missing or deceased staff member.

Definitions

Incident Coordinator is the person, nominated by the Chief Operating Officer who manages the University’s response to critical incidents.

Personal Representative is the legal personal representative of a deceased staff member who may be the Primary Contact or an Executor or Administrator of the staff member’s will or estate. The University Legal Office can provide advice on identifying a legal personal representative.

Local Area Contact refers to the staff member’s College General Manager or Divisional Director as appropriate.

ANU Security (UniSafe) refers to the University’s dedicated security team within the Facilities & Services Division.

Guideline

General

1. In a life threatening or emergency situation, call 000.
2. If an incident has taken place on campus and emergency services have been called, ANU UniSafe can provide immediate first aid, secure the environment, and provide access for emergency services to campus.
3. If ANU UniSafe considers that a situation requires it, then any incident may be escalated to the rostered Incident Coordinator.
4. Any incident covered by this guideline will differ as situations vary. However, the University strives to ensure that any response is timely, sensitive, and comprehensive.
5. The impact on colleagues (including those responding to any such incident), members of the University community, or external clients is managed with sensitivity.
6. The rostered Incident Coordinator or Duty Officer will work with the Director, University Experience, or current Chair of the Student Critical Incident Response Team (SCIRT).

Missing Staff Member

7. When concerns about a staff member’s whereabouts are reported to a College or Portfolio, the Local Area Contact is to gather information to make an initial assessment on the situation.
8. To make an initial assessment where the College or Portfolio suspects a staff member is missing, the Local Area Contact may:

1. Confirm the staff member’s flexible work arrangements to determine if they are working on campus or from home.
2. Confirm that the staff member has not applied for leave of absence. If staff are unable to attend work due to unforeseen circumstances, they are required to advise their supervisor as soon as practicable, provide the reason(s) and the anticipated period of absence.1
3. Access the staff record in the Human Resources Management System (HRMS) to verify details and to gather information, including address, email and phone numbers.
4. Establish whether the staff member had any recent contact, either electronically or in person, with other staff or students, and the length of time since this has occurred. All such enquiries should be carried out in discrete and sensitive manner.
5. Confirm with ANU UniSafe the staff member’s CARDAX building access activity around campus in the previous 24 hours.
6. Confirm with the relevant building custodian or other relevant staff member, the staff member’s SALTO building access activity in the previous 24 hours.
7. Confirm with ITS whether the staff member has recently accessed ANU systems.

9. If after a number of attempts to contact the staff member – personal phone contact, email, Teams message – there is no response, the Local Area Contact is to contact the emergency contact and request that they attempt to contact the missing staff member.
10. If the emergency contact is unable to contact the staff member, or if the emergency contact themselves is unable to be contacted, or if there are concerns about the use of the Emergency Contact then the matter is to be escalated to the Chief People Officer as soon as possible or no later than close of business on the first day concerns have been raised.
11. The Chief People Officer may, in lieu of the Emergency Contact, choose to contact another appropriate person at their discretion (e.g. a treating medical practitioner.)
12. The Chief People Officer or their nominee will make a determination to contact the Australian Federal Police, or relevant authorities and request a welfare check be conducted at the staff member’s place of residence. This contact will be coordinated through the Senior Manager, ANU Security. ANU Staff or Students are not to attend the missing staff member’s place of residence.
13. For staff members receiving assistance from the injury management team, additional contact options may also involve contacting treating medical practitioners or the Adviser to Staff.
14. If the University is made aware a staff member is unable to be found at their place of residence and is considered missing, the CPO or nominee notifies:

1. The rostered Incident Coordinator
2. The ANU UniSafe Management Team
3. The Chief Operating Officer
4. The Local Area Contact

15. If the University is made aware that the staff member is deceased, see clause 20.
16. Where a staff member who is not an Australian citizen is confirmed to be missing and the emergency contact has already been informed, the Incident Coordinator, in consultation with the Chief Operating Officer will:

1. Liaise with relevant internal and external stakeholders as appropriate.
2. Hire interpreters with relevant NAATI certification or equivalent qualification and/or experience (if required). Consideration should be given to this regardless of English language proficiency due to the impact of shock or grief for people for whom English is a second language.

17. The ANU UniSafe Management Team will remain the relevant University point of contact with the relevant Emergency Services.
18. The Chief People Officer, or nominee, will remain the relevant University point of contact with the missing person’s emergency contact.
19. The ANU UniSafe Management Team will maintain contact with the rostered Incident Coordinator, Chief People Officer and Chief Operating Officer to ensure they remain informed and in case any escalation is required. However, unless escalated, coordination of the University’s response remains the responsibility of the Chief People Officer.

Deceased Staff Member

20. Where a staff member dies on campus, call 000 immediately and notify the Australian Federal Police and emergency services. Following that, call ANU UniSafe [(02) 6125 2249)].
21. ANU UniSafe may be made aware of a staff member’s death from a number of sources. Upon any such notification, ANU UniSafe will notify the Incident Coordinator.
22. ANU UniSafe will remain the University point of contact with the relevant Emergency Services and provide appropriate assistance as required.
23. ANU UniSafe, in consultation with the Chief Operating Officer and the deceased staff member’s College or Portfolio leadership, will determine the most appropriate University point of contact for the family and personal representative of the deceased. No University contact should be made with the family until confirmation has been provided by the Australian Federal Police or the relevant appropriate authority that they have notified the next of kin.
24. The wishes of the staff member’s family and personal representative should be taken into consideration when appropriate throughout this guideline.
25. When notified of a staff death on or off campus, ANU UniSafe notifies the rostered Incident Coordinator, to determine whether this incident should be escalated to a Critical Incident.
26. The rostered Incident Coordinator will inform:

1. The Chief Operating Officer;
2. The Chief People Officer;
3. The Deputy Chief People Officer, Safety and Wellbeing within four business hours of being informed, to determine what reporting (e.g. Comcare) or follow up investigation is necessary, and if information needs to be provided to the family about workers compensation claim entitlements (in the case of work-related death).
4. Office of the Vice-Chancellor

1. To send a letter of condolence, in consultation with the relevant Dean and General Manager or Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Director, to be translated if required.

5. The University Legal Office

2. To assess external agency requests for information, act as a conduit for preparing documents for external agencies, and provide advice on privacy (in consultation with the Chief Privacy Officer).

6. The relevant Dean and General Manager or Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Director to ensure that, at an appropriate time and if applicable:

1. All relevant staff and students are informed. All staff communications are drafted in consultation with the Advisor to Staff and Director, ANU Communications & Engagement.
2. The staff member’s details are removed from publicly facing websites and phone lists.
3. New supervisory arrangements are put in place for impacted staff, coursework, and research students.
4. New arrangements are put in place to convene, teach or otherwise support impacted coursework programs.
5. Research and philanthropic partners (as relevant) are informed and new arrangements put in place in consultation with the Office of Research and Innovation Services and ANU Advancement as appropriate.
6. The staff member’s office and any physical belongings are secured for retrieval by the relevant authorities or personal representative. ANU materials should be removed and stored securely.

7. Adviser to Staff

1. To coordinate counselling support for affected students and staff.
2. To be consulted on any internal communications to affected groups.

8. Information Technology Services

1. To coordinate the required electronic access removal and archiving of materials as required.
2. In consultation with the CPO, to determine whether an automatic response is placed on the deceased staff member’s email account.

9. The Chief Campus Environment Officer

1. To coordinate the cancellation of the deceased staff member’s building access cards.
2. To coordinate the cancellation of the deceased staff member’s parking arrangements as appropriate.

10. The Chief People Officer

1. To liaise with colleagues within People & Culture as well as the Division of Shared Services to ensure that, taking into consideration all sensitivities, the colleagues employment record is accurately updated.
2. the staff member is removed from the University payroll.

11. University Librarian

1. To ensure that automatic requests for return of library materials are not sent.

12. The Chief Marketing & Communications Officer

1. To coordinate any external communications.
2. To be consulted on any internal communications going to large groups.

27. If a death has taken place on University property then ANU UniSafe will ensure that the location of that death remains as secure and undisturbed as possible, aside from allowing appropriate actions taken to make the area safe.
28. The area must remain undisturbed by University staff until it is released back to the University by the Australian Federal Police, Comcare or the relevant appropriate authority.
29. Where the deceased is an international staff member, the Chief Operating Officer may:

1. Notify the AFP Diplomatic Liaison, Department of Home Affairs and the relevant Embassy or Consulate if relevant and appropriate.
2. Assist the family or personal representative with funeral/repatriation arrangements, the return of personal effects, insurance, travel and accommodation, meet them on arrival, and arrange for them to meet with relevant staff and/or students.

30. The College or Portfolio, in line with the deceased or deceased family’s wishes, is responsible for determining the most appropriate means, if any, of memorialising that colleague (e.g. a memorial event or book of condolence).
31. In exceptional circumstances, the Chief People Officer may approve financial assistance to assist direct family with travel, accommodation, and other arrangements.
32. If affected family are also staff members of the University and they are experiencing financial distress, information can be provided on the staff relief fund and the employee assistance program (https://services.anu.edu.au/human-resources/wellbeing).

Conclusion

33. At the conclusion of an incident involving a missing or deceased staff member, the Incident Coordinator or nominee:

1. Arranges access to appropriate counselling or Employee Assistance Program (EAP) support for all relevant staff or students.
2. Reviews with relevant staff involved, the management response, with a view to identifying improvements to the procedure and future response.
3. Compiles a summary report including key lessons learnt to key stakeholders and those involved in the response to the incident.

34. All records/documents created under this procedure are kept in the University’s Electronic Records Management System (ERMS).

Related Content

ANU Policy Library - Policy - Critical Incidents

ANU Policy Library - Procedure - Student critical incident

11 https://policies.anu.edu.au/ppl/document/ANUP_000552