 Positive momentum in safety and risk prevention
 act in a sustainable manner to prevent occupational risks |
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Gascogne's health, safety and environment policy puts into action its commitment to “act in a sustainable manner to prevent occupational risks through permanent and continuous improvement in its performance in this area”. This policy was formally defined in a Safety Charter underpinned by four principles: responsibility, forward planning, decision-making, exemplary behaviour. The charter was distributed to all employees and displayed at all the Group's sites. This determination generated positive momentum based on quality programmes and initiatives introduced at all business units. |
This determination generated positive momentum based on quality programmes and initiatives introduced at all business units. These initiatives are underpinned by a commitment by all employees according to their individual duties and role.
The programme to improve safety and prevent risks that was started in all the divisions of the Group is bearing fruit.
The overall frequency rate on 31 December 2008 records a decrease of nearly 10 points with respect to December 2007 (situation neutralised by the preventive measures related to the ozone incident at the DAX factory). The highest drops in the frequency rate, from the Sacks and Distribution divisions, are to be applauded. In 2008, certain sites in the Wood, Laminates and Distribution divisions have recorded “zero accident”, a performance that has sometimes been repeated over two consecutive years.
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The programme to improve safety and prevent risks that was started in all the divisions of the Group is bearing fruit. |
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The programme of Management Safety Visits is being implemented at all sites, stepping up managers' commitment to safety issues in the field and improving the focus on the staff and their working conditions.
In 2008 safety internal audits have been organised in all group's divisions. Those audits help to evaluate the implementation of steps for improvement in the area and to uphold our commitment to act on our results in a sustainable manner.
Challenges posed by skills management
The principal challenges include planning ahead for the major factors driving change in divisions' human resources requirements, maintaining and developing individual skills, which help to boost performance and employability, adjusting skills to business changes, dealing with demographic trends and sharing expertise. Knowledge and individual evaluation of skills should make for more accurate identification of areas for training, which helps to raise levels of professionalism and adapting to changes in jobs. |
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Knowledge and individual evaluation of skills should make for more accurate identification of areas for training, which helps to raise levels of professionalism and adapting to changes in jobs. |
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This programme which has started in 2007, mainly at the Dax plant (Gascogne Laminates) has been followed up and spread in 2008.
Work descriptions and the required skills of all the jobs at the Group (about 80) are being finalised. Jobs specific to the Distribution and the Wood industry have been defined with the active participation of groups comprising permanent members.
This work is the preliminary step to introducing professional interviews for developing individual and collective skills for 2009. Knowledge and the assessment of skills assist in better identifying the training required in relation to the evolution of job descriptions and skills. In fact, the divisions, and Wood, Laminates and Distribution in particular, have stepped up their efforts towards professionalisation by devoting, for example for the Paper division, 62% of the budgeted training hours to this end.
As part of negotiations concerning the forward planning of jobs and skills (GPEC) in France, skills-related challenges and management underwent an in-depth review within the Group involving senior management teams, the HR departments and labour partners (union organisations and works committees).
Enhanced labour dialogue
A new configuration of the representative leaders of the respective staff at Gascogne Paper and Gascogne Sack has been put in place, refocusing on the representation for issues specific to these two divisions and their staff.
Several negotiations with the union and management organisations have taken place within the divisions, mainly about forward planning of jobs and skills (GPEC), salaries and profit sharing.
HR new information system
The Human Resources teams worked hard in 2008 to set up a new HR management software system which was launched on 1 January 2009 and which was taken over by a group-wide Shared Service Centre. This new information system, common to several divisions, mainly deals with payment processing, skill management and training. It also equips HR management with tools for steering, statistics and reporting, thus relieving the divisions of a part of the quantitative data processing
The HR teams are refocusing progressively on work-training development and actively assisting in the restructuring required within the divisions, especially:
- Distribution: bringing together the purchase/marketing sections
- Paper: restructuring of production teams, dispatch and recruitment of a team to install the new coating machine
- Laminates: several recruitments at the Dax factory and participating in shutting down the Givet site.
Since 2007, Gascogne has set up an intranet site to provide easier access to information for all employees about the Group and its environment and to make information more accessible and more locally-oriented.
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