Fieldwork, research cruises and group trips at BIO

Employees participating in group travel must register the trip using the travel registration form, Fieldcard and travel registration BIO (Page 1 of 8)

Group travel is defined as any type of domestic or international travel (excluding expeditions and fieldwork) involving either:

• a group of at least five employees, or
• one employee traveling with one or more students.

All participants in fieldwork must use the form Fieldcard and travel registration BIO (Page 1 of 8) to register their trip and follow the UiBs Guidelines for health, safety and environment at fieldwork, research cruises and group trips — Regelsamlingen documentation.

Prior to departure, a risk assessment must be conducted for the planned activity, and any necessary measures to reduce risk must be implemented. A local emergency response plan and notification procedures must also be established.

Use a Safe Job Analysis (SJA) if unexpected tasks arise on-site that may involve increased risk or require special safety considerations. HSE risk assessment and safe job analysis (SJA) | The HSE-gateway | UiB

Fieldwork contact person: see the contact list Contact us - who does what? | Department of Biological Sciences (BIO) | UiB

Participation on research cruises must use the form Fieldcard and travel registration BIO (Page 1 of 8) to register their trip and flow the UiBs Guidelines for health, safety and environment at fieldwork, research cruises and group trips — Regelsamlingen documentation . Remember to include the name of the vessel in the registration form.

Employees, students, and guest researchers participating in research cruises must receive the necessary safety training onboard the vessel.
In addition, the following requirements must be met by cruise participants, cruise leader, and students (on board for several days and who perform work onboard):

• Valid medical certificate for seafarers, valid for 2 years
• Survival suit course, Falc Nutec. The course is valid for 5 years. Not necessary for students. A safety course for using survival suits will be given onboard the vessel.
• Cruise leaders must also complete the cruise leader course and the 40-hour HSE training for sea and land (e-learning course).
• Safety delegates must have the 40-hous HSE course for sea and land.
• Guest researchers must have a valid medical certificate from their home country.

Exceptions to the requirements:

• Students participating in field courses at sea for less than one day and not performing work onboard are not required to have a medical certificate or survival suit course
• The survival suit course is not required for Guest researchers. Training will be provided on board the vessel.

It’s your responsibility to have the papers in order before participating in a research cruise. Onboard the vessel, you will be asked to show your certificates.

Contact the responsible person for research cruises: Contact us - who does what? | Department of Biological Sciences (BIO) | UiB

UiB’s website gives an overview of the most important insurances that apply for all employees at the University.

It is important to note that you must be a member of the National Insurance Scheme in order for the insurance policies to apply. Questions regarding insurance should be directed to the local HR contact person.

For booking of work- related travels, please use UiB credit card for payment and register the travel expenses in the self-service portal.

Fieldwork

Fieldwork is not defined as official travel, but as obligatory work outside the ordinary place of work. Employees are covered by accident insurance for the duration of the fieldwork.

Research cruises

Employees are insured against accidents for the duration of the expedition.

Students

Students are generally covered for occupational injury under the National Insurance Act if the injury occurred while the student was in a teaching situation, at the place of teaching or during teaching hours. This also applies to injuries that may occur during fieldwork since it is organized by UiB. Further information is available on UiB's website.

Special rules for foreign students in Norway.

Students studying or doing fieldwork abroad must have their own travel insurance. It is the students' own responsibility to ensure that they have valid travel insurance before travelling abroad. See here for more information about health, safety and insurance for students travelling. (The link is only available in Norwegian).