The CEO and the European Works Council sign a unique charter
Solvay announces today that Christian Jourquin, the Group’s Chief Executive Officer, and members of the European Works Council have signed a charter allowing for the definition of shared objectives regarding sustainable development and corporate social responsibility. This unprecedented initiative at the level of the European Works Council has been formalized during a ceremony in Brussels in the presence of Kristin Schreiber, Head of Cabinet of the European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, Vladimír Špidla.
Through this Charter, both the Management of the Group and the Secretariat of the European Works Council, representing 12 countries of the European Union where Solvay has industrial operations, wish to confirm the principles and guidelines expressing their common willingness to contribute to the implementation of corporate social responsibility by means of a regular dialogue in the context of the commitment “Towards Sustainable Development”.
Sustainable Development rests upon the application of a number of principles, such as equal opportunities, promotion of diversity, free job choice, rejection of child labor, social dialogue, training and competencies, job safety, wages, health and safety of individuals, well-being at work and the contribution to the Group’s strategy towards Sustainable Development in terms of safety and environment.
The Solvay Group shares the will to create the conditions for a more sustainable development, as expressed by the Heads of State at the global summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, followed by the Johannesburg summit of 2004. As from 1992, the Group has adhered to the global Responsible Care® charter, the voluntary program of the chemical industry for constant progress in health, safety and environmental matters.
“I am delighted the Solvay Group and the members of its European Works Council have written this Charter, which is addressing sustainable development in both a social and environmental sense. Given the engagement of the Solvay Group in the European Alliance for Corporate Social Responsibility, we do expect a lot of this Group in regard to this matter”, said Kristin Schreiber, Head of Cabinet of the European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, Vladimír Špidla.
“The Group’s management now will make an effort to ensure that its action plan really absorbs the results of the dialogue with the European Works Council and the principles expressed in this Charter”, said Christian Jourquin, Chief Executive Officer of Solvay, who also emphasized: “As far as Sustainable Development is concerned, the initiatives taken by the Executive Committee and the Solvay management should be associated with those of the community.”
“There is so much at stake, we should find a way to cut ourselves off from our reflexes, our habits, our constraints, our education, if we really want to think of a different world. The old divides such as the permanent opposition between employers and trades unions are definitely a thing of the past. We urgently need to share our responsibilities,” commented Noël Tritz, member of the secretariat of Solvay’s European Works Council.
SOLVAY is an international chemical and pharmaceutical Group with headquarters in Brussels. It employs more then 28,000 people in 50 countries. In 2007, its consolidated sales amounted to EUR 9.6 billion, generated by its three sectors of activity: Chemicals, Plastics and Pharmaceuticals. Solvay (NYSE Euronext : SOLB.BE - Bloomberg: SOLB.BB - Reuters: SOLBt.BR) is listed on the NYSE Euronext stock exchange in Brussels. Details are available at www.solvay.com.
