The role of ombudsperson in the world of education is not new to him. He previously held the same position at Delft University of Technology and HU University of Applied Sciences Utrecht, and is currently also an ombudsperson at IHE-Delft, the Association of Universities in the Netherlands (UNL) and the Association of Universities of Applied Sciences.
In addition to the 20 hours he devotes to his work as ombudsperson for Radboud University employees, Job is also a labour conflict mediator and he chairs the complaints committee for undesirable behaviour at various organisations. His other work mainly involves conducting investigations of incidents involving suspected undesirable behaviour.
Asked about his motivation for engaging with issues like conflict or miscommunication, he says: “Life is too short and too precious to be dominated by unfulfilled desires, unresolved conflicts, frustrations and fear. Any unwanted intrusion that a person experiences in their personal domain, both physical and psychological, must be addressed. I believe that the help and support needed in this context should be available and deployable, and I see it as my calling to contribute to this process, both privately and professionally.”
Contact
You can contact the ombudsperson if you have any suspicions or knowledge of potential structural problems in personnel and other policies and/or their implementation. You can reach them via ombudsfunctionaris [at] ru.nl (ombudsfunctionaris[at]ru[dot]nl). Job van Luyken is available by appointment on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. You can find him on the fifth floor of Mercator 1.