Sustainable development
A safe workplace
Occupational health and safety (OH&S) is a top priority for Holcim. The health and safety of employees, contractors, third parties and visitors is fundamental to our business success. We recognize that even one incident is one incident too many. Despite ongoing efforts, we deeply regret that 28 people lost their lives in 2010 while discharging their duties for Holcim. We remain committed to achieving our vision of "zero harm to people" and will continue with efforts to improve our safety performance.
Providing a safe workplace
To achieve our vision of "zero harm" to people, the best possible technical conditions in the plants and nurturing a culture of safety throughout the Group are pursued. All Group companies are required systematically to implement a series of fatality prevention directives by the end of 2010. The directives were developed after an in-depth analysis of the major causes of fatalities and encompass hazard identification, risk assessment and controls, training, and maintenance and emergency procedures.
The Holcim OH&S management system further guides our approach. Clear organizational accountabilities are supported by a robust program of training, communication, strict procedural discipline and locally developed policies and action plans. Five Cardinal Rules have been laid down, as below. There is zero tolerance for breaches and very stringent consequence management.
Five Cardinal Rules
| 1 | Do not override or interfere with any safety provision and do not let others override or interfere with safety provisions |
| 2 | Personal protective equipment rules applicable to a given task must be adhered to at all times |
| 3 | Isolations and lock-out procedures must always be followed |
| 4 | No person may work if under the influence of alcohol or drugs |
| 5 | All injuries and incidents must be reported |
Special attention is given to embed our safety culture with contractors and third parties working on-site at our locations. All contractors are required to comply with Holcim safety standards, including the Five Cardinal Rules.
The pre-processing of AFR (Alternative Fuels and Raw Materials) requires safety standards and procedures comparable to those used in the petrochemical industry. Managing AFR process safety is therefore an important consideration. A Holcim directive sets the required standards and complements existing safety procedures on hazard identification and mitigation, and emergency response.
Health programs
Holcim is committed to implementing more comprehensive health management programs for employees. 86% of Group companies have a program to assist workers, their families or community members affected by serious diseases. Furthermore, 98% of Group companies reported that they had formal joint health and safety committees, including management and employee representatives, and that these committees represent 88% of the workforce.
Fatalities - cement, aggregates and ready-mix concrete*
* Numbers of fatalities are reported following the WBCSD reporting standards.
Lost-time injury frequency rate*
*Data for LTIFR are regrouped to reflect the CSI reporting standards. Direct employees include own and subcontracted personnel under direct Holcim supervision. The lost time injury frequency rate (LTIFR) is calculated as:
Number of lost-time injuries x 1,000,000 Total number of hours worked
Data includes all cement, aggregates as well as ready mix concrete operations. The rate for directly employed improved by 5% The average absentee rate reported by Group companies for 2009 was 2.2% (2009: 2.4%, 2008: 2.4%)
Target
All Group companies were required systematically to implement a series of fatality prevention directives by the end of 2010. Implementation will be audited from 2012.
