Global Compact CoP

Principle 1:
Businesses should support and respect the protection of internationally proclaimed human rights.

Key actions in 2020:

• Monitored our human rights performance and practices through our “Compliance Risk Reporting and Self-Monitoring Process”
• Incorporated human rights and modern slavery into our “EHS StartUp!” training for new EHS managers
• Offered e-learning courses on our Human Rights Charter and our Social and Labor Standards Policy, targeted to all managing directors and senior leaders reporting directly to the Executive Board
• Integrated humans rights into our Site Security Standard
• Adopted and published our Conflict Mineral Charter
• Analyzed human rights risks connected to the deployment of new technologies

Relevant GRI disclosures:

103-2: 412-1, 412-2

Reference:

Compliance management
Human rights

Principle 3:
Businesses should uphold the freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining.

Key actions in 2020:

• Conducted internal audits on workplace matters covered in our Human Rights Charter, which are specified in more detail in our Social and Labor Standards Policy
• Regularly and extensively included local employee representatives in company decision-making
• Reviewed human rights issues within the scope of our Site Security Risk Assessments
• Kept track of human rights issues through our “Compliance Risk Reporting and Self-Monitoring Process”

Relevant GRI disclosures:

102-41, 402-1, 407-1

Reference:

Compliance management
Human rights
Fairness and dialogue

Principle 4:
Businesses should support the elimination of all forms of forced and compulsory labor.

Key measures in 2020

• Conducted internal audits on workplace matters covered in our Human Rights Charter, which are specified in more detail in our Social and Labor Standards Policy
• Published on our website our UK Modern Slavery Statement, which has been endorsed by our Executive Board
• Incorporated human rights and modern slavery into our “EHS StartUp!” training for new EHS managers

Relevant GRI disclosures:

409-1

Reference:

Compliance management
Supply chain standards
Human rights
Fairness and dialogue

Principle 6:
Businesses should support the elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation.

Key actions in 2020:

• Developed goals and measures to achieve a more balanced gender structure across different hierarchical levels of our business sectors
  exceeded our 2021 target of maintaining a 30% representation of women (2020: 35%) in leadership roles (Role 4+)
• Supported numerous local and global employee networks
• Expanded the mandate of our Diversity Council in terms of LGBTQI+, disability and ethnicity
• Became a sustaining member of Charta der Vielfalt e.V., a German organization that promotes diversity in the workplace
• Executed a Group-wide training program on unconscious bias
• Expanded our flexible work options

Relevant GRI disclosures:

102-8, 202-1, 202-2, 401-1, 401-3, 404-1, 404-3, 405-1, 405-2, 406-1

Reference:

Diversity and inclusion
Work-life balance

Principle 7:
Businesses should support a precautionary approach to environmental challenges.

Key actions in 2020:

• Passed third-party ISO 14001:2015 audits at 13 sites
• Performed 10 internal EHS audits, with all audited sites being rated as “good” or “satisfactory”
• Reduced CO₂ emissions around 25% below our 2006 baseline (2019: 15%) amid operating business growth (2020 reduction target: 20% below 2006 baseline)
• Defined new climate action targets for 2030 and 2040
• Took action to lower greenhouse gas emissions
• Reduced our water consumption at sites in water-stressed areas by 27% relative to the 2016 baseline (2019: 21%)
• Defined new water targets for 2025 and 2030
• Worked towards shrinking the environmental footprint of our waste by 5% by 2025, as measured by our waste scoring system. In 2020, we achieved a 4.6% reduction (2019: 1.6%)
• Took measures to ensure product safety (for instance REACH, GHS), plant and process safety, and transport and warehouse safety (such as internal EHS audits)

Relevant GRI disclosures:

201-2, 301-1, 302-1, 303-1, 305-1, 305-2, 305-3, 305-6, 305-7

Reference:

Chemical product safety
Transport and warehouse safety
Environmental stewardship
Climate action
Waste and recycling
Water management
Plant and process safety

Principle 8:
Businesses should undertake initiatives to promote greater environmental responsibility.

Key actions in 2020:

• Systematically examined potential energy savings at our production sites
• Commercialized greener alternative products such as Cyrene™, our Stericup E filtration system and our microplastic-free functional filler RonaFlair
• Deployed reusable and recyclable packaging, which we also offer to our customers
• Offered sustainable mobility options to employees (such as “Jobticket” public transit passes and shared bicycles)
• Installed at our global headquarters an extensive electric vehicle charging infrastructure, part of which is available to our employees for their own personal use

Relevant GRI disclosures:

301 - 308

Reference:

Sustainable product design
Packaging and recycling
Climate action

Principle 10:
Businesses should work against corruption in all its forms, including extortion and bribery.

Key measures in 2020

• Performed 52 internal audits on corruption-related risks
• Expanded our range of e-learning courses to include anti-corruption and money laundering
• Expanded and carried out anti-corruption, antitrust, data privacy, and healthcare compliance training
• Continued to operate our SpeakUp Line, a free hotline for reporting corruption anonymously
• Formed partnerships and engaged stakeholders to coordinate and enhance anti-corruption efforts
• Published annual EFPIA transparency reports
• Rolled out new guiding principles and standards for ethical interactions with health systems

Relevant GRI disclosures:

102-16,
102-17,
205-1,
205-2,
205-3,
415-1

Reference:

Compliance management
Responsible interactions with health systems