We have a number of follow-up mechanisms that allow us to monitor how our own organization and our suppliers live up to our Code of Conduct. They are used differently depending on the level of risk.
| Purpose | Criteria | Findings 2016 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ALFA (Awareness-Learning-Feedback-Assessments) |
A self-assessment questionnaire filled out by line managers, to:
Check the extent to which units comply with the Code of Conduct.
Ensure that line managers are regularly reminded of what is expected of them. |
Annually for manufacturing units, based on the key elements of the Workplace Standard. |
Response rate: |
| Code of Conduct audits | To identify areas of improvement and ensure compliance with the Code of Conduct. | Internal audits of selected manufacturing units, chosen following risk assessments based on key elements of the Workplace Standard. | Conducted 9 audits in China, Egypt, Mexico and Thailand in 2016. 9(12) of 22 (25) high-risk facilities (based on country-risk and internal assessment) were audited. Findings show that health and safety, working hours, environment and compensation are the areas where the greatest number of non-compliances occur. Local corrective action plans are followed up. |
| The Ethics Helpline | A whistle-blowing service that enables bottom-up monitoring from employees. The helpline allows employees to remain anonymous (to the extent permitted under local law), without fear of exposure or retaliation. |
Third-party operated. Covers breaches of ethics-related policies such as the Code of Ethics, Code of Conduct and Corruption and Bribery policy. It currently covers 99% of our employees. |
The highest number of reports relate to abusive behavior and falls into ‘Discrimination and harassment’. See graph. |
| Internal audits | Provides independent assurance. Evaluates the effectiveness of risk management, control, and governance processes by conducting operational, financial, and compliance process audits and investigations of alleged employee fraud. | Risk-based annual plan approved by the Audit Committee; Ad hoc investigations of reported fraud allegations. | Reported to Group Management and Audit Committee. |
| Employee Engagement Survey (EES) | The survey assesses engagement, leadership, organizational capabilities and commitment to our strategy and purpose. It allows for external comparison with other high-performing learning organizations. | Annual and group-wide, among employees in offices and manufacturing. |
Response rate: 93% (87). Electrolux has reached a record of 67% (64) of participation (our engagement plus index), reaching the external benchmark. The results of the survey are used to improve how business operations are managed. |
| Global audits of ISO standards for environment and safety | External audits. Each business area must have an environmental management system implemented at all manufacturing sites, based on the Environmental Policy, Workplace Standard and ISO 14001 certification. |
Annual audits of all manufacturing facilities, with recertification audits every third year. For selected sites, the audits also cover OHSAS for health and safety. All manufacturing units of over 50 people must be certified to ISO 14001, and newly acquired units are required to complete the certification process within three years of joining the Group. |
ISO 14001 audits conducted by 93% of eligible manufacturing units. The majority of the findings relate to missing or inadequate processes for identifying significant environmental aspects, and on-site emergency preparedness. |
|---|---|---|---|
| The sustainability KPI survey | An annual performance assessment used to track operational environmental management and compliance in the areas of materials, waste and chemicals, employee turnover, and health and safety statistics. Forms the basis of our reporting for GRI indicators. | In 2016, all manufacturing sites, 34 (36) warehouses and 28 (35) offices. | N/A |
| Green Spirit certification and reporting system |
Green Spirit focuses on environmental performance improvement and employee engagement. The reporting system monitors energy and water consumption data among Electrolux manufacturing facilities. Best practice is shared among sectors. |
All manufacturing sites are evaluated annually as part of the Green Spirit certification, and are awarded stars according to their achievements in the group-wide energy management certification system. | Certification process completed during 2017. |
| Safety Management System (SMS) | Factory self-assessment protocol to assess how manufacturing units meet internal safety standards. | Conducted annually among all Global Industrial Operations manufacturing units. | In 2016, all 38 manufacturing units within Global Industrial Operations underwent an SMS assessment by the OHS Global team in addition to the self-assessments. |
| Responsible sourcing audits | Assessment of how suppliers meet expectations as defined by the Code of Conduct and Workplace Standard. |
Audits of direct material (raw materials, parts and sub-assemblies) suppliers identified as medium to high-risk, carried out by Electrolux. Indirect suppliers were audited for the first time in 2015.
New Group audit tools for responsible sourcing were rolled out in 2015. Audited suppliers are ranked on performance and categorized according to the findings. Categorization criteria have been tightened and include: disqualified (zero tolerance findings), conditional (more than two critical findings), active (only findings of non-critical character) and preferred suppliers (only minor findings). |
Carried out 471 (427) supplier audits, mainly in China, Mexico, Brazil and Egypt. Key areas for non-compliance for suppliers include health and safety, environment and working hours. Non-compliance with the Code of Conduct is addressed through mandatory corrective actions as well as ‘beyond compliance’ support activities such as training and capacity building. See table for findings.
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| External verification of sustainability reporting | To increase credibility in our reporting approach and improve our reporting practices. | The sustainability report (as referenced in the GRI index) is reviewed in accordance with the Swedish standard RevR 6 |