Social and Economic

Our work with social and economic sustainability issues are guided by our vision but in more practical terms, by our Corporate Governance Framework that includes our:

• Code of Business Conduct
• Corporate Governance Policies
• Other policies and guidelines such as HR policy, policy on whistle blowing, occupational health and safety policy, etc.

This topic includes occupational health and safety, the working environment, employee satisfaction and engagement, income and psychosocial work enviornment. Occupational Health & Safety is a high priority. DeLaval operates in an industry that is challenged with many potentially dangerous situations. Not only in our industrial operations but also for our sales staff, installation teams and service technicians on farms who often operate in remote and challenging conditions. 

DeLaval has a clear ambition to achieve zero incidents and accidents. We have safety procedures in our own facilities that are under constant review and we adjust whenever improvements are apparent. We follow all the legal regulations of the country in which we are present. We receive regular audits and in addition use external partners to provide extra consultation and auditing.

The Corporate Governance Framework of DeLaval (the Framework), sets the baseline for how we act in our operations worldwide, internally as well as in our external relations. The Framework is key to the sustainable and successful business of DeLaval. It is developed and mandated by the Board and implemented by DeLaval’s Group Management. The Framework consists of the following components:

• Roles and Responsibilities
• The Code of Business Conduct
• Corporate Governance Policies
• Controls

THE CODE OF BUSINESS CONDUCT
The Code of Business Conduct covers, amongst other areas, compliance with laws and regulations, health and safety in the workplace, anti-discrimination, confidentiality and information management, conflicts of interest, anti-corruption and antibribery, prevention of child labour and forced labour, export control and trade compliance.

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE POLICIES
The Code of Business Conduct is further supported by the Corporate Governance Policies, which in more detail sets standards for DeLaval’s operations in the various areas covered by the Code of Business Conduct. The Corporate Governance Policies include policies on areas such as Confidentiality and Information Management, Risk Management, Conflicts of Interest, Whistle Blowing, External Audits and Internal Audits. 

CONTROLS AND TRAINING
The Controls set the framework for the controlling and supervising of the adherence to the Code of Business Conduct, the Corporate Governance Policies and other supporting policies and guidelines. The yearly Management Declaration, signed by our CEO and Group Management, assures the Board the conformance to the Framework. The CEO and Group Management in turn verify conformance through signed Management Declarations, annual Control Self Assessments and quarterly confirmations regarding compliance with specific corporate policies, submitted by the managing director of each DeLaval legal entity. The internal audit team of Tetra Laval, in addition to external auditors, provides further comfort that the Framework is adhered to across the DeLaval Group. Our staff is encouraged to escalate breaches of the Framework or other serious inappropriate behaviour that comes to their knowledge. Such escalations may be made to higher level management, HR, Legal Affairs or under our whistle blowing policy. An employee “blowing the whistle” in good faith is explicitly protected from disciplinary actions or other consequences related to the whistle blowing. 

Our goal is to ensure an inclusive work environment with full diversity where our talent thrives.

Targets
• 25% female employees and female managers by 2025
• 30% female employees and female managers by 2030

We have several activities underway to reach our goals. Here are some examples:

• Internal training on gender diversity and unconscious bias
• When shortlisting candidates for roles, we aim for a 50/50 gender split
• We have several local communities focusing on the promotion of diversity, such as Women in Blue in the US, The Diversity At Work Network in Sweden and the Employee Club in China. These local communities are actively organizing varied activities to promote the diversity & inclusion culture and mindset