Serious problems involving sexual harassment, threats and a severe psychosocial working environment have affected a department at contractor Femern Link Contractors on the Femern construction project.
This is evident from a decision by the Danish Working Environment Authority obtained by FemernBusiness through a freedom of information request.
The case describes the working environment in a steward department responsible for service and control tasks on the construction site. According to the authority, employees in the department had for a prolonged period been subjected to offensive behaviour by their immediate management. The Danish Working Environment Authority became involved after an employee complaint in October 2025 and carried out inspection visits in November. In its decision the following month, the authority concluded that the company had subsequently remedied the conditions.
According to the Danish Working Environment Authority, employees were subjected to “hurtful or degrading remarks”, “offensive communication” and “spontaneous and unjustified anger”.
How many millimetres?
The case also contains concrete examples of sexual innuendo in the workplace. In one incident, a manager is described as making the comment “how many millimetres?” while using a label machine and lowering it towards his own crotch.
Employees also describe how management referred to what took place in a meeting room called the “red room” as “naughty”.
According to the Danish Working Environment Authority, these were not isolated incidents. The offensive behaviour continued over several months and occurred “often daily and at least several times a week”.
Threats to fire everyone
Employees told the Danish Working Environment Authority that management’s style was marked by threats. According to the decision, employees experienced the manager as “threatening to ‘fire everyone in the department and hire others who can do the job’”.
The case also describes a daily working environment marked by raised voices, aggressive behaviour and a tone that employees perceived as condescending and intimidating.
According to the case, the consequences for employees were significant. Several experienced sleep problems, changes in mood and a loss of job satisfaction, as well as stomach aches before starting work. At the same time, employees became afraid to raise concerns with management.
The Danish Working Environment Authority was also informed of an employee who had been on sick leave with stress symptoms as a result of the conditions.
During the authority’s interviews, employees also showed clear signs of distress in the form of shaking hands, nervous speech and visible uncertainty, especially when discussing management’s behaviour.
The Danish Working Environment Authority concluded that the company had violated the rules on the psychosocial working environment and that the offensive behaviour, by its nature and extent, posed a health risk to employees. It also found that the company’s preventive measures at the time were insufficient.
Manager no longer employed
The case ended with a reprimand. The Danish Working Environment Authority ultimately attached weight to the fact that the company had subsequently identified the person responsible for the offensive behaviour and that the individual was no longer employed. The company also stated that it had strengthened its policies and measures to ensure a better psychosocial working environment.
In a response to FemernBusiness, FLC said that the conditions described by the Danish Working Environment Authority have “now been remedied” and referred to the company’s zero-tolerance policy towards offensive behaviour. The company declined to comment further on the specific personnel matter or to elaborate on what changes had been implemented following the case.
