Employees

Employee engagement, attractive employer, learning organisation, talent management

Management approach

Vetropack’s long-term success is inextricably linked with its ability to offer its employees attractive work conditions and career development opportunities. The level of employee commitment is directly related to an employee’s feeling of well-being in the workplace. Such a feeling of well-being also reduces absences due to health problems and accidents, increases work performance and motivation, and raises the level of employee creativity and productivity. A high degree of employee satisfaction is also critical for a company’s reputation and essential for attracting talented individuals.

All management functions have a common responsibility to support and motivate employees. Managers are responsible for strengthening employees’ loyalty to the company and identifying and promoting talented employees. The Human Resources department supports the achievement of the various goals by defining the Employer Branding Strategy and establishing processes and instruments for recruiting employees, promoting employee commitment, and talent management. In line with the principle of a learning organisation, employees are encouraged to assume responsibility for their personal and professional development.

Vetropack actively practises a “Group first” philosophy that includes international career opportunities and the exchange of best practices. This philosophy also promotes the establishment of a common identity among employees and a feeling of belonging to the Vetropack family. Vetropack has set itself the goal of becoming a learning organisation, which is why the Group has integrated the concept of continuous learning into its vision and set of values. Vetropack also consistently supports the development of its employees by means of both formal and informal training measures. Vetropack has introduced a Talent and Organization Review Process (TOR) at the Group level and in this manner has strengthened its proactive talent management system and ensured that successors are available to take over any key positions that might become vacant. The TOR process includes a talent assessment and an assessment of the organisation as a means of creating a pool of successors, who in each case are talented employees who possess the essential skills needed in the glass industry. Vetropack also utilises a system for the effective internal transfer of knowledge.

In order to gauge the level of employee satisfaction, Vetropack conducts employee surveys on a regular basis that provide the Group with information on what employees believe to be the strengths and weaknesses of the company. Recommendations made by employees in the most recent survey included proposals relating to the optimisation of communication measures and management processes and the expansion and optimisation of career development opportunities. Vetropack is addressing the latter issue by continually refining its training and career development programmes. The Group utilises specific KPIs to monitor the progress it makes in the area of human resources development.

Disclosures

GRI 102 General Disclosures
102-8 Information on employees and other workers

GRI 202 Market Presence
202-2 Proportion of senior management hired from the local community

Vetropack does currently not measure the proportion of management staff hired from the local community. However, since most operations are located in rural areas, it estimates the proportion to be at least 50%.

GRI 401 Employment
401-1 New employee hires and employee turnover

401-2 Benefits provided to full-time employees that are not provided to temporary or part-time employees

Labour law stipulations and remuneration practices vary from country to country. The benefits provided to full-time employees therefore also vary in line with the specific circumstances in each country.

401-3 Parental leave

GRI 402 Labour/Management Relations
402-1 Minimum notice periods regarding operational changes

Transparent internal communication is a top priority at Vetropack. All regulatory requirements regarding notice periods were met in 2019.

GRI 404 Training and Education
404-2 Programs for upgrading employee skills and transition assistance programs

Vetropack offers all the training and education programmes needed to ensure its employees receive adequate support for their professional development – whether that means being successful in their current job or preparing themselves for the next step in their career. Vetropack employs a multifaceted development approach that attaches great importance to learning on the job, whereby this is supplemented by classroom training and online courses. Training programmes cover the topics of technology, IT, language skills, soft skills, project management and leadership.

404-3 Percentage of employees receiving regular performance and career development reviews

Vetropack currently has a process in place to conduct performance reviews with all white collar workers, which represent around 40% of the total workforce. While Vetropack did not track the exact percentage in 2019, it plans to implement a system to monitor this process in 2020.

Discussions with staff members help the company better understand the needs of its employees. In discussions held during the year under review, many employees expressed their desire to see an expansion of the career development opportunities offered by the company.

Occupational health and safety

Management approach

“Safety first” is part of the DNA of the Vetropack Group. Employees who work in glass production are exposed to high temperatures, moving machine parts and high levels of noise. Ensuring the health and safety of employees at all times is therefore a top priority at Vetropack. For the company, this means not only complying with legal provisions but also promoting the physical and mental health of employees in order to ensure they remain motivated and satisfied.

Our views regarding the importance of occupational health and safety are contained in the Vetropack mission statement and reflected in our occupational safety policy. These views are also taken into account in our strategy and in the design of our business processes. Occupational safety is managed on three levels. The Head of the Quality and Management Systems department is directly responsible for the Quality, Safety and Environmental Protection specialist department. The Group Officer for Occupational Safety coordinates activities via the Safety Managers at the business units and plants, who in turn are responsible for ensuring compliance with safety standards at the production sites.

The Safety Managers come together in the Occupational Safety Working Group to discuss various safety issues that apply to all plants. This exchange of information is designed to ensure that safety concepts are implemented, that safety regulations are complied with and that various tools and resources that enable the achievement of safety objectives are made available.

The Occupational Safety Working Group also conducts internal audits every year. These audits determine whether the prescribed measures for continually improving occupational safety have been implemented and whether the health of Vetropack employees is ensured at all times. The audits are also used to identify potential for improving occupational health and safety at Vetropack.

Disclosures

GRI 403 Occupational Health and Safety
403-2 Injuries, occupational diseases, lost days, work-related fatalities